(r^ 


Colutuijia  SBnibersiitp 
in  tl)c  Citp  ot  i^eto  gorft 

^cijaol  of  Pental  anii  {©cal  ^urgerp 


3lgvefercnce  Hibrarp 


WORKS   BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR 


THB   STUDY    OF   CHILDREN    AlTD   THEIR    SCHOOL   TRADflNG. 

$i.oo.     The  Macmillan  Company,  New  York. 

MENTAL  FACULTY:  A  Course  of  Lectures  on  the  Growth  and  Means 
of  Training  the  Mental  Faculty.  Delivered  in  the  University  of  Cam- 
bridge. 90  cents.  Cambridge:  at  the  University  Press.  The  Mac- 
millan Company,  New  York. 

THE  ANATOMY  OF  MOVEMENT:  A  Treatise  on  the  Action  of  Nerve- 
Centres  and  Modes  of  Growth.  Three  Lectures  delivered  at  the  Royal 
College  of  Surgeons.    Cr.  8vo,  cloth. 


INTERNATIONAL  SCIENTIFIC  SERIES 
PHYSICAL  EXPRESSION:  Its  Modes  and  Principles. 


REPORT  ON  THE  SCIENTIFIC  STUDY  OF  THE  MENTAL  AND 
PHYSICAL  CONDITIONS  OF  CHILDHOOD,  with  particular  refer- 
ence to  those  of  Defective  Constitution;  also  containing  Recommenda- 
tions as  to  Education  and  Training.  Published  by  the  Committee,  71 
Margaret  Street,  London,  W. 


A  Bibliography  of  Reports,  Lectures,  and  Papers  relating  to  the  Scientific 
Study  of  Children,  with  reference  numbers,  is  given  on  page  217. 


/ 


SHOWING  SIMULTANEOUS   MOVEMENT  OF  THE   LITTLE   FINGER 
AND  THE  LITTLE  TOE  ON  THE  SAME  SIDE 


THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM 
OF  THE  CHILD 

Its  Growth  and  Health  in  Education 


BY 


FRANCIS  WARNER,   M.D.  (Lond.) 

F.R.C.P.,  F.R.C.S.  (Eng.) 

PHYSICIAN  TO  AND  LECTURER  AT  THE  LONDON  HOSPITAL,  ETC 

AUTHOR  OF  "THE  STUDY  OF  CHILDREN  AND  THEIR 

SCHOOL  TRAINING,"  ETC. 


THE   MACMILLAN    COMPANY 

LONDON:   MACMILLAN  &  CO.,  Ltd. 
I915 

All  rights  reserved 


f.    ' 


Copyright,  igoo, 
By  the  MACMILLAN  COMPANY. 


Set  up  and  electrotyped.     Published  January,  1900.     Reprinted 
February,  1906;  March,  1915. 


NorfaiootJ  )|res0 

J.  8.  Cashing  &  Co.  —  Berwick  &  Smith  Oo. 

Norwood,  Mass.,  U.S.A. 


PREFACE 

At  the  close  of  the  nineteenth  century,  as  we  review 
the  progress  that  has  occurred  in  the  conditions  of 
social  life  and  the  trend  of  public  opinion  and  thought, 
we  cannot  fail  to  be  impressed  with  the  greater  refine- 
ment and  humanity  in  the  management  of  children, 
and  the  increasing  appreciation  of  the  real  value  of 
the  mental  aspects  of  life.  Most  of  the  great  achieve- 
ments of  this  century  have  resulted  from  the  increase 
of  exact  knowledge  and  the  application  of  scientific 
principles  to  the  objects  to  be  obtained.  Perhaps  in 
no  branch  of  study  has  more  activity  been  displayed 
than  in  that  which  concerns  mind.  Especially  has 
much  been  accomplished  in  that  part  of  this  study 
which  deals  with  the  evolution  of  brain  action  as  ob- 
served in  the  child.  Recent  advances  in  this  direction 
have  made  it  possible  and  desirable  to  adapt  those 
methods  to  child-study  which  have  been  employed 
in  physics,  biology,  natural  history,  and  medicine;  i.e. 
methods  of  observation,  description,  and  inference.  I 
think  there  are  a  great  number  of  readers  and  students 
who  desire  to  obtain  a  real  grasp  of  the  great  problems 
concerning  the  relation  of  mind  and  body  in  the  child, 


vi  PREFACE 

and  following  scientific  principles  are  willing  to  work 
diligently  to  the  attainment  of  that  end.  For  this 
purpose  they  must  know  what  to  look  at  and  what  to 
look  for  in  the  child,  as  facts  to  be  studied  and  aids 
to  sound  conclusions.  Many  students  feel  the  need 
of  knowing  more  of  the  character  and  significance  of 
the  phenomena  they  observe,  which  are  often  obscure 
in  their  origin,  and  desire  to  understand  more  about 
what  they  can  see  as  definite  facts.  They  desire  — 
and  rightly  desire  —  to  understand  something  of  the 
mental  attitude  of  their  pupil  corresponding  to  some 
distinct  visible  act.  And,  certainly,  not  to  follow  the 
workings  of  the  child's  brain,  is  to  risk  losing  oppor- 
tunities of  rendering  assistance  in  the  formation  of 
character,  and  may  lead  to  grave  mistakes  in  edu- 
cation. 

This  book  is  addressed  to  that  large  body  of  earnest 
workers  for  the  welfare  of  children  which  is  seeking 
for  knowledge  of  facts  and  principles  in  harmony  with 
the  best  wisdom  attainable  as  to  the  mind  and  body 
of  the  child.  To  you  who  are  engaged  in  this  study 
scientific  methods  will  afford  something  permanent  in 
your  work ;  an  inquiry  followed  out  with  intelligent 
purpose  will  give  experience  grounded  on  a  sure  basis. 
Dignity  and  success  are  added  to  the  duties  of  caring 
for  children  by  some  employment  of  scientific  methods 
of  gaining  knowledge.  A  mere  rule  of  thumb  expe- 
rience, valuable  as  the  outcome  of  dealing  directly  with 


PREFACE  Vii 

individual  children,  may  be  rendered  doubly  useful 
when  directed  by  a  deeper  scientific  knowledge,  such 
as  will  place  the  phenomena  of  child  life  in  their  proper 
place  among  the  facts  of  nature,  and  show  how  far  it 
is  wise  to  adjust  environment  to  the  child. 

The  study  of  children,  and  a  knowledge  of  the  ner- 
vous system  of  the  child  and  of  the  best  means  of 
promoting  its  health  and  training,  concern  parents, 
teachers,  and  members  of  the  medical  profession,  each 
in  their  several  relations.  I  trust  that  this  work  may 
lead  to  the  harmonious  action  of  all  three  classes  in 
education,  and  in  scientific  study. 

Children  are  here  for  the  most  part  described  in 
relation  to  the  school  and  to  education  rather  than 
to  the  family.  Individual  children  are  described,  as 
well  as  natural  groups  and  their  peculiarities,  much 
stress  being  laid  upon  the  study  of  observations.  While 
thus  adapting  the  work  to  the  needs  of  teachers  in  day- 
schools  and  boarding  establishments,  it  has  been  neces- 
sary to  touch  upon  many  considerations  of  hygiene ;  in 
such  matters  the  advice  and  assistance  of  the  physi- 
cian is  often  necessary.  In  addressing  this  book  to 
teachers  I  have  endeavoured  to  indicate  distinctly  where 
help  is  required  from  medical  science;  as  the  oppor- 
tunities for  useful  advice  from  the  medical  profession 
increase,  it  is  necessary  that  there  should  be  a  common 
understanding  as  to  the  terms  to  be  used  in  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  conditions  of  childhood.      For  these  pur- 


Viii  PREFACE 

poses  we  must  practise  methods  of  observing  children 
and  making  scientific  inferences  from  what  we  see. 

Many  medical  men  are  now  concerned  with  school 
work  as  managers  or  medical  officers,  or  in  other  ways 
intimately  associated  with  the  care  of  children  and  their 
education.  It  appeared  convenient  to  adopt  the  plan 
of  addressing  teachers  rather  than  parents  and  medical 
men.  Not  to  burden  the  reader  with  technical  matters 
of  purely  scientific  and  medical  interest,  references  are 
given  to  reports  and  papers  previously  published,  some 
of  them  statistical  in  character,  which  afford  further 
explanation  of  the  diagnosis,  as  well  as  methods  of 
treatment,  which  could  not  be  given  in  the  compass  of 
this  volume. 

Mental  study,  pursued  in  a  scientific  spirit,  must  be 
founded  on  observations,  and  inferences  drawn  from 
them,  as  to  the  modes  of  brain  action  corresponding 
with  those  observations.  In  a  former  volume  I  have 
dealt  at  length  with  the  methods  of  observing  children ; 
here  the  experience  gained  is  put  before  the  reader 
with  ample  references  to  the  observations  on  which  it 
is  founded.  Still  the  student  should  learn  to  observe 
and  describe  what  he  sees  for  himself;  otherwise  he 
may  simply  receive  dogmatic  instruction,  and  fail  to 
acquire  progress  in  scientific  thought  and  practice. 
General  modes  of  brain  action,  indicated  by  visible 
movements,  may  easily  be  perceived,  and  their  obser- 
vation recorded  in  accurate  detail.     Methods  of  classi- 


PREFACE  IX 

fying  observations  will  be  readily  appreciated  by  the 

student  of  natural  history ;  these  classified  observations 

amount  to  scientific  descriptions  of  children,   and  we 

are  thus  enabled  to  follow  with  accuracy  the  mental 

conditions  produced  successively  under  the  influence  of 

education.     As  we  proceed  by  the  methods  employed 

in  science  and  in  clinical  medicine,  the  need  of  mental 

as  well  as  physical  hygiene  in  the  training  of  children 

will  become   apparent.      Passing   under   consideration 

the  stages  of  evolution  in  the  child  from  infancy  to 

adolescence,  we  shall  by  employing  these  means  obtain 

insight  into  the  proper  management   and   training  of 

children. 

My  thanks  are  due  to  Dr.  Wm.  B.  Dove  for  much 

assistance  in  correcting  proofs  and   in  preparing  the 

index. 

F.  W. 

5  Prince  of  Wales  Terrace, 
Kensington,  London,  W. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER   I 

PAGE 

Introductory i 

The  child  at  home  and  in  school.  Responsibilities  toward 
children  and  in  learning  to  understand  them.  The  student  of 
childhood  should  follow  the  methods  of  natural  history;  brain 
changes  are  thus  observed,  while  class  management  is  facilitated. 
The  antecedents  and  surroundings  of  children.  Growth  of  brain 
necessitates  feeding  and  training.  Brain  the  physical  basis  of 
mind,  its  cultivation.  Hygiene,  circulation,  training;  the  brain 
reacts  on  bodily  health.  Impressions  received  upon  the  brain 
under  guidance,  stage  by  stage.  School  hygiene,  mental  and  phys- 
ical. School  aspect  of  childhood,  constant  observation  necessary. 
Qiild-study  leads  to  descriptions  of  boys  and  girls.  Delicacy  and 
mental  dulness.  Accurate  observation  guides  training.  Relation 
of  physiognomy  to  brain  and  mental  ability.  Training  brain 
action  should  precede  instruction  and  bear  on  the  future.  Exam- 
ples. Physical  exercises  vdthout  use  of  words.  Order  of  sensory 
impressions  retained,  their  discrimination  and  comparison.  Prepa- 
ration for  other  studies.  Examples.  Means  of  controlling  the 
child,  imitation.  Rapid  inference  from  observation  of  the  child. 
Imitation  of  the  teacher's  weariness.  Control  of  the  school. 
Mental  hygiene,  faults  of  children  studied.  Examples.  Brain 
training  in  infancy  and  early  childhood.  Spontaneity  trained  stage 
by  stage.  Impressions  associated  with  words.  Mental  compari- 
son. Moral  training.  Previous  training  employed  in  teaching. 
The  concrete  aim  in  education. 

CHAPTER  II 

The  Brain  and  Body  in  Infancy  and  Early  Childhood        .      23 
Home  life.      The   infant  at  birth,  spontaneity  of  movement, 
strength   of  muscles,  the   limbs   bent.      Photograph  of  a  baby. 
Sleep,  habits,  rapid  growth  of  brain.     The  brain,  its  parts  or  nerve 


xii  CONTENTS 

PAGS 

centres.     Their  separate  action  and  interaction  on  one  another. 

Action  indicated  by  movements.  Brain  needs  nourishment  and 
stimulation.  The  infant's  head.  The  fontanelle,  its  pulsation, 
brain  circulation,  growth  of  head.  The  chest  and  lungs.  Teeth- 
ing. Child  at  twelve  months,  care  and  training  habits.  The 
young  child,  spontaneity  needs  guidance,  aptitudes  of  brain. 
School  age,  self-control,  memory,  mental  method.  Reversion  to 
childishness.  Limits  of  power  of  the  child's  brain.  Examples. 
The  child  should  be  childlike  for  his  age.  All  mental  action 
expressed  by  movement.     General  character  of  brain  action. 

Spontaneity  motor  and  mental,  it  may  be  subnormal,  deficient, 
excessive,  or  repetitive.  Examples.  Impressionability,  its  evo- 
lution expressed  in  many  ways.  Inhibition  of  movement  lead- 
ing to  regulated  action,  the  pause  before  action.  Examples. 
Attention.  Control  through  the  senses.  Guidance  with  partial 
inhibition  of  spontaneity.  Imitation  at  sight.  Examples.  Con- 
trol through  muscle  sense,  its  importance  in  hands  and  eye  move- 
ments. Feehng  of  muscles  in  tension,  in  estimating  weights,  in 
number,  and  in  proportion.  Examples.  Compound  brain  action. 
Interaction  of  nerve  centres  and  final  response.  Examples.  In 
simple  imitation  no  interaction  of  the  brain  centres.  Habits 
evolved  by  training.  Retentiveness  shown  in  acquired  habits  and 
memory,  it  leads  to  voluntary  power,  and  is  due  to  formation  of 
nerv'e  paths  in  brain.  Coordinated  action,  movements  in  a  series 
controlled  through  the  senses.  Brain  centres  become  connected 
by  nerve  paths  in  practice.  Examples  in  infant  and  child.  Spon- 
taneity coordinated  indicates  dawning  mental  faculty.  Spreading 
area  of  movement.  Examples.  A  storm  of  passion,  tricks  and 
habits,  stammering.  Emotion  fatigues  brain.  Response  of  the 
brain  seen  in  movement.  Pause  between  sensory  stimulus  and 
response,  brain  action  in  interval  may  correspond  to  thinking,  it 
may  be  prolonged.  General  modes  of  brain  action  more  readily 
appreciated  than  detailed  signs.  Description  of  a  bright  and 
healthy  boy. 

CHAPTER  III 

The  Child  at  School 48 

The  child  entering  school.      Scientific   observation  leads  the 
teacher  to  inferences  and  experience.     Reports  on  100,000  chil- 


CONTENTS  xiii 


dren.  What  to  look  at  and  what  to  look  for.  Methods  of  obser- 
vation. The  face  and  forehead.  Nerve  signs.  Frontal  muscles, 
corrugators,  eyelids.  The  mouth,  grinning,  smiling.  Expression 
of  face.  Eye  movements.  Attitudes  and  movements  of  the  hand, 
as  an  indication  of  brain  state,  method  of  observation.  Weak 
hand  balance,  seen  in  sleep.  Nervous  hand  balance.  Finger 
action,  its  brain  significance,  finger  twitches.  The  spine,  lordo- 
sis. Conditions  associated  with  "  nerve  signs,"  their  varying 
significance  and  connection  with  mental  dulness.  The  basis  of 
physiological  psychology.  Observation  should  guide  training. 
Physiognomy  and  development  of  body,  body  and  brain  co-related. 
The  head  of  the  infant.  The  features,  method  of  observation. 
The  nose,  mouth,  eye  openings.  The  palate.  Growth  and  weight. 
Healthy  spontaneity  of  brain  and  mental  aptitude  form  a  basis  for 
training.  Cultivation  of  impressionability  and  control  through  the 
senses,  method  of  training,  impressions  before  names.  Examples. 
Culture  of  the  senses.  Training  by  muscle  sense  differs  from 
drilling  the  muscles.  Advantages  of  drill.  Number  and  propor- 
tion felt.  Impressions  useful  in  later  teaching.  Evolution  stage 
by  stage.  Establishment  of  nerve  paths  under  training.  The 
physiological  law.  Memory  evolved.  Coordination  cultivated  by 
exactness  in  training.  Spreading  brain  action,  fatigue,  laughter, 
happiness.  Response  and  expression.  Simple  imitation  and 
higher  forms  of  response  due  to  interaction  among  brain  centres 
in  mental  action.  Vocabulary  used  in  expression,  response  without 
words.  Untruthfulness  and  epilepsy.  Brain  training  and  mental 
hygiene.  Impressions  implanted  before  thought  can  be  arranged 
in  words.  Spontaneity  and  control  lead  to  coordinated  action. 
All  teaching  should  be  on  a  system  preparing  for  the  future. 

CHAPTER  IV 

Observation,  Description,  and  Classification  of  Children 

IN  School 73 

Observation  of  movements  in  children.  Examples.  Move- 
ments classified  without  describing  their  cause.  Unifor?n  move- 
ments, tricks  and  habits.  Examples.  Some  replacing  spontaneity, 
others  of  low  type.  Increasing  area  of  movements,  laughter, 
emotion.  Lessening  movement.  Attention,  subsidence  of  emotion, 
sleepiness.     Coordinated  movements.     Examples.     Incoordinated 


XIV  CONTENTS 

PACK 

eye  movements.  Drill,  Cricket.  Nutrition  of  the  body,  signs  of 
health.  Testing  sight  and  hearing.  A  well-made  child  described. 
Normal  and  subnormal  characters  indicated  by  signs  observed. 
Child-study  requires  serious  thought,  self-training,  and  devotion 
to  duty.  Dr.  Stanley  Hall  on  natural  history  and  child-study, 
their  uses.  Camper,  an  artist's  description  of  joyfulness.  Sir  C. 
Bell's  description  of  laughter.  Mental  irritability  described. 
Metaphysical  speculations.  Subnormal  nerve  signs.  Conditions 
of  body  to  be  observed.     Schedule,  a  child  of  nervous  type. 

CHAPTER  V 

Evolution  of  the  Child  and  his  Brain  Power        ...      94 

The  brain  centres,  analogy  to  soldiers  under  discipline.  Evolu- 
tion in  families  and  in  the  child.  Laughter  and  emotion  indicate 
spreading  brain  action.  Mental  evolution.  Observe  and  infer  for 
yourselves.  Natural  history  and  child-study.  Uniformly  repeated 
growth.  Number  of  parts  growing,  increasing  or  diminishing. 
Coordinate  action.  Mimosa.  Similar  action  in  brain.  Plant 
grown  in  poor  soil.  Reversion  to  childishness.  Brain  evolution. 
Analogy  of  brain  centres  and  a  regiment.  Brain  action  here 
studied  and  metaphysics  omitted.  Mental  action  is  expressed  by 
movement.  Time  expressed  by  the  hands  of  a  clock.  Scientific 
study  of  mental  action.  Nerve  mechanism  for  thoughts.  The 
pause  of  inhibition.  Imitation  in  speech.  Observation  and  infer- 
ence. Thought  as  represented  in  the  brain.  Analogy  of  brain 
action  to  an  army  or  a  telephone  system.  Formation  of  nerve 
paths  corresponds  to  coordination.  Impressionability,  Examples. 
Inhibition.  Examples.  Coordinated  action.  Examples.  Com' 
pound  brain  action.  Examples.  Words  retained  in  order. 
Speech  taught.  Brain  action  corresponding  to  thought,  its  anal- 
ogy in  army  organisation.  Method  in  teaching.  The  untrained 
brain  is  liable  to  disorder. 

CHAPTER  VI 

Physical  Care  of  the  Child;  Hygiene  and  Feeding      .       .117 

Health  of  body  and  brain.  Delicate  children  need  training. 
Interaction  of  the  organs  and  the  brain,  good  circulation.  Brain 
regulates  the  organs  of  body.     The  blood,  food  and  digestion. 


CONTENTS  XV 

PAGB 

Interaction  of  conditions  in  the  body.  Weariness,  its  causes. 
Care  of  the  body,  the  child's  duties.  Unconsciousness  of  body. 
Qothing  and  dress.  School  time-table.  Sleeping  rooms.  The 
child  in  sleep,  brain  circulation,  awakening.  Amount  of  sleep 
and  work.  Dormitory  cubicles.  Toilet  and  cleanliness.  Care 
of  eyes  and  sight  training.  Print  of  books.  Light  in  room.  The 
schoolroom.  Oxygen  and  pure  air,  its  temperature.  School 
desks,  method  of  writing.  Dr.  Hartwell  on  physical  training. 
Dietary,  superintendence  of  meals.  Lunch  in  high  schools.  Dr. 
C.  Dukes  on  dietary.  Economical  feeding.  The  matron's  duties. 
Students  at  college,  exercise  and  health  culture.  Health  statistics 
of  women  students.     Health  capacity  for  duties  in  after  life. 

CHAPTER   VII 

The  Training  and  Teaching  of  Young  Children     ,        .        .    140 

Training  differs  from  teaching.  Words  do  not  always  convey 
thoughts,  useful  words.  Impressions  associated  with  names.  Physi- 
ology of  physical  exercises,  nerve  paths  formed.  Imitation  of 
movements  train  coordination,  but  do  not  make  thoughts.  Hand 
exercises,  method  of  procedure.  Teacher  controls  the  brain. 
Eye  movements,  their  use  in  later  teaching.  Examples.  Brain 
impressions  produced  analogous  to  mental  action.  Muscle  sense 
employed  in  training.  Muscle  action  impresses  the  brain  and 
forms  new  nerve  paths.  Accurate  exercises  produce  fatigue. 
School  experience  in  coordinated  exercises,  they  brighten  the 
children.  Dr.  Hartwell  on  physical  training.  Brain  centres 
adapted  to  mental  processes.  Brain  impressions  produced  first 
and  understood  later.  Teaching  colours.  Discrimination  and 
choice.  Value  of  fixed  impressions  and  memory.  Standard  of 
weights  and  measurements,  comparison  of  area,  volume,  size. 
Order  in  teaching  stage  by  stage.  Agreement  and  difference, 
the  characters  compared,  colour,  weight,  etc. 

CHAPTER  VIII 

Advancing  School  Method  and  Teaching         ,        .       .       .159 

The  pupil  at  school.  Teaching  numbers  by  movements.  Im- 
pressions associated  with  names.  Many  kinds  of  impressions 
produced  simultaneously  must  afterward  be  separated.     Demon- 


xvi  CONTENTS 

PACK 

stration  before  explanation.  Principles  taught  and  demonstrated 
afterward.  Classes  of  impressions  formed  stage  by  stage.  Teach- 
ing the  form  of  a  card,  the  previous  training  required.  Observa- 
tion and  comparison.  Coordinated  teaching.  Impressions  and 
comparison  without  words.  Examples.  Learning  the  clock  and 
sense  of  time.  Names  for  objects  and  abstract  ideas.  Language 
for  expression.  Ideas  of  causation,  antecedents,  and  sequents. 
Common  mistakes.  Brain  impressions  must  be  separated  and 
classified  in  making  comparison.  Some  spontaneity  of  brain  must 
be  allowed.  "Question  time."  Geographical  distance  taught. 
Enlarging  and  limiting  range  of  thought.  Mental  impressions 
guided  in  teaching.  Teaching  natural  history.  Memory  of  direc- 
tions or  method.  Parsing  trains  scientific  analysis.  Coordinated 
method.  Mental  analysis  trained  by  observation.  Schedule  used 
in  studying  natural  history  directs  observation.  Examples  of 
specimens  observed. 

CHAPTER  IX 

The  Nerve  Centres  in  Infancy,  School  Life,  and  Adoles- 
cence; THEIR  Health  and  Training  .  .  .  .174 
The  infant  brain  grows  rapidly,  its  pulsations  can  be  felt. 
Value  of  play  and  child  society.  Preparing  for  school.  Impres- 
sions better  than  verbal  explanation.  Good  brain  training  pre- 
vents mental  confusion.  Spontaneous  thinking.  Children's 
criticisms  of  teacher.  Indications  of  micntal  aptitude.  Sponta- 
neity the  basis  of  mental  power.  Infant's  brain  action  described. 
The  school  child  must  pause  to  think.  Cultivating  attention 
through  eye  and  ear,  effects  of  previous  training.  Mental  fatigue, 
its  causes  and  expression.  Means  of  prevention.  Value  of  work 
not  proportional  to  the  fatigue.  Effective  training  saves  brain 
wear.  Lonesome  children  often  tired.  Memoranda  help  memory. 
Attention  is  spontaneity  controlled.  Example.  Coordinated  cell 
action  in  plants.  Causes  of  inattention,  spreading  action,  eye 
movements,  deafness  and  eye  defects,  rapid  heart  action,  delayed 
expression.  Memory  mechanical  like  a  phonograph.  Too  many 
fixed  impressions  lessen  free  mental  power.  Examples.  Impres- 
sionability without  retentiveness.  Reception  and  reproduction  of 
impressions,  verbal  memory.  Interaction  of  impressions  and  ad- 
hesiveness.     Memory  of  physical  exercises.      Rearrangement  of 


CONTENTS  xvii 

PAGB 

previous  impressions.  Systematic  classification.  Trains  of  thought. 
Learning  facts,  adhesion  of  ideas.  Analysis  and  analogy.  Social 
memory.  Forgetfulness.  Mental  confusion  from  want  of  clear 
impressions.  Reversion  to  childishness  due  to  lowered  brain 
nutrition.  Spontaneous  return  of  trains  of  thought,  dreams, 
delirium.  Replacement  of  thoughts  implies  dissolution  of  nerve 
paths. 

CHAPTER  X 

Mental  Hygiene  and  Voluntary  Mental  Power  .  .  .194 
Physiology  of  mental  action  inferred  from  expression.  Hygiene, 
physical  and  mental.  Mental  aptitude,  each  indication  to  be  cul- 
tivated individually  and  collectively.  Mental  hygiene  as  a  science. 
Voluntary  power,  consciousness  not  admitted  as  the  cause.  Analy- 
sis of  voluntary  action,  motor  and  mental.  Its  connection  with 
antecedents  and  dependence  on  the  general  characters  of  the 
brain.  Spontaneity.  Impressionability.  Inhibition,  concentrated 
attention.  Dominant  ideas.  Suppressing  outside  thoughts  fa- 
tigues. Control  through  the  senses  and  muscles  must  be  precise 
in  early  training.  Previous  impressions  revive  in  order  under 
direction  or  a  dominant  idea.  Directions  in  teaching,  if  retained, 
aid  voluntary  thinking.  Example.  Established  modes  of  brain 
action,  methods  of  procedure.  Voluntary  action  in  home  lessons. 
Coordination  of  brain  from  previous  training  aids  volition. 
Spreading  brain  action  may  increase  thinking  or  interfere. 
Examples.  Response  may  be  delayed,  but  voluntary.  Evolution 
of  voluntary  power  stage  by  stage.  Complex  actions  in  harmony 
with  the  environment.  Modes  of  brain  action  contributory  to 
volition.  Choice  and  comparison.  Established  modes  of  action. 
Examples.  Voluntary  acts  independent  of  outside  stimulus.  Co- 
ordinated action  without  control.  Intelligence  indicated  in  the 
order  of  expressing  thoughts.  Examples.  Voluntary  obedience 
at  home  and  in  school.  Example.  Experience  and  training. 
Volition  traced  in  modes  of  brain  action.  Well-established  mental 
impressions  interact  under  influence  of  environment.  Examples. 
Voluntary  power  to  be  cultivated  systematically.  Spreading  brain 
action  may  interfere.  Health  and  volition.  Involuntary  move- 
ments. Voluntary  thought  without  expression.  Experience  gained 
in  school  life. 


THE 
NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

CHAPTER   I 
Introductory 

The  children  are  the  mainspring  of  life  and  interest 
in  the  home  and  in  the  school;  their  demands  are 
many  and  urgent,  raising  feelings  in  us  of  affection, 
and  many  thoughts  as  to  their  well-being  in  childhood 
and  in  the  future;  they  awaken  a  sense  of  our  re- 
sponsibility towards  the  individual  child,  as  well  as  to 
others,  in  as  far  as  his  future  life  and  action  may 
depend  upon  the  wisdom  and  acquired  experience 
which  we  bring  to  bear  on  his  health  and  training. 

Such  responsibilities  begin  in  the  family,  where 
others  besides  the  parents  have  an  interest  in  the 
child,  and  duties  to  perform  towards  him.  The  well- 
trained  infant  is  likely  to  become  an  apt  infant-school 
pupil;  and  so  throughout  the  early  years,  stage  by 
stage,  the  child  forms  a  centre  of  interest  and  duty 
in  many  and  varied  aspects. 


2  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

Still,  it  is  a  fact  that  children  bring  troubles  to  those 
around  them,  and  much  weariness  in  labouring  for  their 
welfare.  Such  feelings  should,  in  response,  awaken 
your  efforts  and  the  desire  for  further  knowledge  of 
child-life,  and  of  understanding  the  dawn  of  mental 
aptitudes,  which  sometimes  appear  conflicting  as  seen 
in  the  child's  feelings  and  modes  of  response  towards 
those  around.  Such  facts,  if  looked  at  without  under- 
standing, are  apt  to  lead  to  regrettable  mistakes.  Why 
does  the  infant  cry  ?  What  does  he  want  ?  Only  our 
observation  and  experience  can  give  an  answer.  So  in 
the  infant  school,  "Why  will  not  the  children  stand 
still?"  We  shall  see  further  on  that  spontaneous 
movements  indicate  the  most  hopeful  conditions  of 
the  brain  for  the  future.^ 

To  the  question,  "Why  does  not  the  child  under- 
stand what  I  say .? "  it  may  be  replied  that  perhaps 
your  words  raise  no  impressions  in  his  mind  because 
the  necessary  training  has  not  yet  been  received. 

To  trace  out  the  meaning  and  the  origin  of  our  diffi- 
culties in  dealing  with  children  will  give  a  new  pleasure 
to  the  work,  and  enable  us  to  plan  in  our  own  minds  what 
to  do,  adding  an  inteUigent  interest  to  daily  duties  in  the 
care  of  children  of  any  age.    (See  Chapter  VII.,  p.  147.) 

The  student  of  childhood  has  a  large  field  of  observa- 
tion open  to  him.  To  know  the  mind  of  the  child,  and 
to  trace  out  its  developing  faculties,  necessitates  much 

1  *' Mental  Faculty,"  pp.  24  and  68.    The  Macmillan  Company. 


SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT  3 

attention  to  child-study ;  and  this,  I  think,  should  com- 
mence with  observation  of  the  child  after  the  methods 
of  natural  history ;  describing  what  we  see,  classify- 
ing our  observations,  and  making  inferences  as  to  what 
is  going  on  in  the  body  and  in  the  brain  of  the  child 
before  us.  This  power  you  will  attain  for  yourselves 
by  practice,  with  some  understanding  of  what  is  occur- 
ring in  the  brain  of  the  child  before  you,  while  you 
learn  to  adapt  your  methods  in  training  to  the  condi- 
tions of  the  child  and  your  own  aims  for  his  wel- 
fare. 

The  class  teacher,  with  his  pupils  before  him,  can 
look  at  each,  and  if  he  knows  what  to  look  for,  he  will 
be  able  to  follow  the  changing  brain  moods  of  the  pupil, 
watching  the  impressions  the  pupil  receives  from  in- 
struction, their  interaction,  and  the  final  outcome  in 
expressing  mental  abilities  or  faults.^ 

The  principal  of  the  school  needs  to  know  each  pupil 
sufficiently  for  the  purpose  of  classification,  and  must 
readily  appreciate  character  and  mental  abilities  or  dis- 
abilities. Such  rapid  observation  affords  a  basis  of 
reasonable  knowledge,  which,  when  combined  with 
experience,  will  suggest  the  best  means  of  meeting 
the  difficulties  that  arise  with  every  child. 

The  training  of  a  child,  the  management  of  a  class, 
and  the  arrangement  and  control  of  a  school  demand 
knowledge  of  the  individual  pupils  and  the  formation 

1  Reference  49. 


4  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

of  a  rapid  opinion  of  each  from  observation  with  infer- 
ences founded  thereon.  The  conditions  of  each  child, 
not  merely  the  rules  of  the  school,  should  help  in  form- 
ing a  judgment  of  conduct.  Does  the  pupil  forget  the 
lesson  he  learnt  over  night,  or  bring  up  a  sum  very 
incorrectly  worked  out,  it  is  necessary  and  very  inter- 
esting to  analyse  and  follow  out  the  causes  of  the 
success  or  failure;  the  faults  may  be  in  the  child's 
brain  while  doing  the  work,  as  well  as  those  due  to 
want  of  accurate  impressions  received  in  previous 
training.  (See  Chapter  X.)  If  you  study  brain  action 
as  well  as  the  mind,  you  may  observe  what  goes  on 
in  the  child  while  under  your  guidance,  and  also  when 
he  is  alone  and  self -controlled  in  his  work.  Child-study 
will  give  an  interest  to  the  life  of  the  teacher  who  trains 
himself  to  observe  and  intelligently  traces  out  what  takes 
place  in  the  pupil.  This  will  add  power  and  dignity  to 
his  work. 

In  caring  for  the  young  you  should  never  fail  to 
consider  the  antecedents  and  the  consequences  of  the 
present  surroundings  of  the  children  ;i  the  past  tells 
upon  the  present,  and  the  present  controls  the  future 
—  as  is  commonly  said,  the  child  is  the  father  of 
the  man. 

A  healthy  brain  in  a  healthy  body  is  what  we  want 
to  cultivate  in  the  child  (see  Chapter  IX.);  the  brain 
and  the  body  are  mutually  dependent  on  one  another, 

1  Effects  of  overcrowding,  etc.     References  10-12. 


BRAIN   HEALTH  5 

and  without  the  health  of  each,  mental  power  and 
activity  will  run  low.  The  brain  is  the  physical  basis, 
or  seat  of  mental  action  such  as  is  expressed  in  gesture, 
movement,  or  by  spoken  or  written  words ;  further,  the 
action  of  the  brain  gives  vitality  to  the  body,  con- 
trolling its  nutrition  as  well  as  the  processes  of  diges- 
tion, respiration,  and  circulation.  Thus,  a  healthy 
condition  of  the  blood  demands  proper  feeding  and 
digestion,  while  for  its  purity  it  requires  oxidation  (see 
Chapter  VI.,  p.  127);  exercise  with  walks  and  play  in 
the  sunshine  quickens  a  healthy  circulation,  both  in  the 
body  and  the  brain,  supplying  them  with  the  neces- 
sary food  and  oxygen ;  light  and  well-ventilated  rooms 
being  necessary  for  the  same  reason.  (See  Chapter 
VI.  p.  122.)  Physical  exercises,  drill,  and  gymnastics 
aid  development  of  the  chest  and  lungs;  also  tending 
to  strengthen  the  growth  of  the  heart.  The  brain  acts 
upon  the  body ;  its  disorderly  action  may  cause  dys- 
pepsia, palpitation,  and  breathlessness ;  liability  to 
nervous  disorders  often  results  from  want  of  early 
discipline  in  well-regulated  modes  of  brain  action,  and 
training  in  those  systematic  modes  of  mental  procedure 
which  might  save  the  child  from  too  much  emotion 
followed  by  fatigue  and  exhaustion.  The  young  per- 
son who  is  allowed  to  grow  up  without  good  and 
established  habits,  is  liable  at  adolescence  to  excite- 
ment, emotion,  restlessness,  and  is  apt  to  suffer  from 
consequent    palpitation,    dyspepsia,    and    prostration, 


6  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

which  early  and  continuous  culture  might  do  much 
to  prevent.^ 

The  brain  receives  impressions  through  the  senses, 
while  other  activities  in  it  appear  to  be  spontaneous. 
In  training  and  in  teaching  we  endeavour  to  produce 
impressions  in  the  brain;  some  directing,  guiding,  and 
controlling  the  natural  spontaneous  activities,  while 
others  are  designed  to  produce  the  special  action  which 
we  wish.  When  showing  an  object,  you  may  make 
the  child  look  at  it,  and  feel  it,  both  as  to  its  size 
and  its  weight ;  thus  impressions  are  produced  in  his 
brain.  When  he  asks  "What  is  it  .-^ "  you  couple  the 
name  with  what  he  sees ;  then  as  he  feels  the  weight, 
you  name  that  impression  as  **  heavy."  Such  training 
by  physical  impressions  should,  I  think,  precede  any 
attempt  in  giving  descriptions  and  making  compari- 
sons ;  impressions  must  be  received  accurately  in  the 
brain  before  they  can  be  compared.  The  child  can 
associate  "heavy"  with  the  feeling  of  an  iron  weight 
in  his  hand,  and  "light"  with  the  feeling  of  an  empty 
pill  box.  Later  on,  after  he  has  gained  experience,  he 
will  be  able  to  compare  the  weight  and  the  box. 

These  considerations  as  to  the  relations  between 
mental  action  and  the  brain  on  the  one  hand,  and  the 
body  on  the  other,  lead  me  to  speak  of  the  Hygiene 
of  School  Life  in  its  physical  and  mental  aspects ; 
these   subjects   will   be   dealt   with   in    later   chapters. 

1  Reference  27. 


SCHOOL   HYGIENE  7 

School  Hygiene  is  generally  understood  to  describe 
the  means  of  cultivating  bodily  health,  and  avoiding 
the  illnesses  and  diseases  common  during  the  period 
of  childhood,  especially  those  that  are  preventable, 
such  as  diphtheria  and  the  infectious  fevers.  Mental 
Hygiene  can  hardly  be  said  to  be  established  as  a 
science,  yet  many  facts  have  been  accumulated  avail- 
able for  the  purpose.^ 

The  school  aspect  of  childhood  is  naturally  that  of 
success  in  acquiring  knowledge,  and  learning  the  sub- 
jects taught ;  while  the  development  of  brain  power 
and  character  is  also  aimed  at.  Other  aspects  of 
childhood  may  also  be  kept  in  view ;  child-study  will 
throw  much  light  upon  educational  problems  and  ques- 
tions that  sometimes  arise,  as  between  the  home  and 
the  school.^  Teachers  see  the  child  in  the  school  in 
the  morning,  fresh  and  active,  when  he  may  be  quick, 
eager,  and  conscientious  in  work ;  the  parents  see  him 
at  night,  tired,  peevish,  and  fretful,  as  well  as  disin- 
clined for  either  food  or  rest.  Observation  might  soon 
show  at  what  period  in  the  day  fatigue  signs  com- 
mence, —  when,  though  mental  work  continues  under 
the  stimulus  of  school  surroundings,  the  brain  nutrition 
begins  to  decline.  The  brain  is  a  sensitive  organ,  it 
performs  much  work  in  the  body ;  it  is  dependent  for 

1  Reference  9,  "  Milroy  Lectures,"  and  48. 

2  See  author's  "  Study  of  Children,"  Chapter  XIII.  The  Macmillan 
Company. 


8  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

healthy  power  upon  the  food  it  receives  through  the 
blood,  and  becomes  fatigued  after  receiving  many  im- 
pressions continuously  through  the  hours  of  work ; 
this  will  be  described  further  in  the  next  chapter. 

A  child  sometimes  looks  full  under  the  eyes,  with 
a  lack  of  expression  and  lassitude  on  entering  the 
schoolroom,  signs  which  may  pass  off  during  a  healthy, 
well-regulated  day's  work  and  play,  while  inquiry  shows 
unhygienic  surroundings  in  the  home  life.^  Some  physi- 
cians have  said  that  all  young  children  are  delicate  — 
they  speak  from  experience  limited  to  their  patients; 
some  head-mistresses  have  said  that  girls  can  study 
as  hard  as  boys ;  inquiry,  founded  on  observation, 
demonstrates  that  delicate  or  ill-developed  girls  are 
more  apt  to  suffer  in  health  from  adverse  circum- 
stances than  boys  similarly  constituted.^ 

Child-study,  leading  to  description  of  the  children 
as  we  see  them,  enables  us  to  make  classifications  in 
many  groups  according  to  the  purpose  in  view.  We 
may  take  a  group  of  children  all  found  to  be  delicate, 
and  study  their  brain  conditions  as  described,  and  their 
mental  aptitudes.  One  hundred  children  may  be  se- 
lected as  dull  or  below  the  average  in  mental  ability ;  ^ 
results  of   observation  will  show  a  certain  proportion 

1  Reference  29. 

2  See  "  The  Study  of  Children  and  their  School  Training,"  p.  245. 
The  Macmillan  Company. 

'  References  15,  41. 


CHILD-STUDY  9 

who  are  also  delicate,  especially  among  the  girls; 
further,  it  will  be  seen  that  most  of  these  children 
present  irregularities  in  movement  and  action,  which 
can  be  removed  by  good  training  with  the  probability 
of  improvement  in  mental  ability.  Many  causes  of 
mental  dulness  are  removable.  Many  varieties  of 
children  will  be  met  with,  and  may  be  described,  either 
as  to  their  mental  abilities,  or  as  to  the  points  ob- 
served in  their  health,  physiognomy,  development, 
and  the  nerve  signs  seen  in  the  movements,  which  in- 
dicate the  action  of  the  brain.  When  a  child  is 
observed  and  studied  in  each  of  these  ways,  a  descrip- 
tion is  obtained,  showing  much  of  the  visible  indica- 
tions of  the  state  of  the  brain  and  its  mental  functions.^ 

Training  is  a  responsible  work ;  each  child  should  be 
known  to  the  teacher  as  an  object  of  study.  The  action 
seen  in  a  child  may  admit  of  different  interpretations  ; 
his  movements  may  be  due  to  much  spontaneity,  or  to 
the  restlessness  of  fatigue.  The  practice  of  accurate 
and  scientific  observation  is  a  responsibility  and  a  duty. 
When  the  teacher  knows  what  to  look  at,  and  what  to 
look/br,  a  rapid  and  correct  opinion  will  be  formed  in 
class  work;  whereas  sometimes  regrettable  mistakes 
result  from  guessing  as  to  why  a  pupil  does  not  do 
what  we  think  right.  Points  for  observation  in  children 
will  be  given  in  Chapters  II.,  III. 

It  will  thus  be  found  often  —  not  always  —  that  the 

1  Reference  32. 


lO  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

boy  with  ill-moulded  features,  and  small  eyes  and 
mouth,  who  is  slow  and  inexact  in  his  movements  and 
response,  is  also  usually  dull  in  mental  work.^  The  girl 
small  in  build  and  in  head,  with  good  features,  change- 
ful expression,  and  quick  response  in  movement,  is 
usually  bright  in  class ;  but  apt  to  be  delicate,  and  often 
disabled.  The  types  and  varieties  of  children  are  end- 
less, yet  all  need  care  and  training ;  hence  child-study 
is  essential  to  the  teacher,  that  he  may  understand  the 
pupil  before  him,  and  do  his  best  according  to  experi- 
ence.2  In  the  same  class  one  pupil  must  be  urged  to 
quicker  response ;  another  to  be  more  deliberate  and 
to  pause  to  think  ;  a  third  to  look  before  he  speaks. 
Training  and  guiding  brain  action  and  mental  action 
should  precede  instruction,  and  is  the  principal  object 
to  be  aimed  at  in  the  earliest  years.  I  here  distinguish 
between  training  and  instruction,  or  teaching.  We 
train  the  pupil  to  look  at  objects,  to  make  a  choice  of 
one,  to  feel  it  both  as  to  its  weight  and  its  size  ;  we  make 
him  feel  it  in  various  ways — thus  producing  impres- 
sions on  his  brain.  We  teach  him  the  numerals,  and 
train  him  to  count  objects  as  he  looks  at  or  touches 
them,  before  teaching  the  use  of  figures  for  numbers. 
We  train  the  child  to  feel  weights,  i  oz.,  2  oz.,  4  oz.,  and 
teach  him  the  number  which  expresses  each  weight ;  we 
make  him  feel  the  2  oz.,  then  the  4  oz.,  and  teach  him 
that  the  latter  is  twice  the  former  weight ;  later  he  is 

1  See  "  School  World,"  Macmillan.     Reference  47.  ^  Reference  8. 


PHYSICAL  EXERCISES  II 

taught  multiplication,  proportion,  and  other  modes  of 
comparison.     (See  Chapter  VIL,  p.  155,  and  X.,  p.  199.) 

All  training  should  bear  on  the  future,  and  be  con- 
ducted stage  by  stage,  with  the  object  of  educating 
brain  action  and  its  faculties  for  mental  work.  Much 
of  this  training  may  be  effected  without  many  words ; 
whereas  knowledge  is  generally  imparted  to  the  child 
by  verbal  teaching,  when  each  word  must  be  understood 
before  accuracy  in  mental  training  can  follow. 

We  all  know  that  physical  exercises,  marching,  organ- 
ized movements,  and  games  are  useful  in  training  young 
children ;  they  influence  the  brain  action  by  guidance. 
These  exercises  are  not  said  to  give  knowledge  or  to  be 
understood  by  the  children,  although  they  are  acted  out 
and  remembered,  becoming  more  exact  by  practice  and 
more  readily  performed  with  less  guidance ;  but  one  ad- 
vantage of  physical  exercises  in  brain  training  is  that  they 
can  be  employed  before  words  of  direction  are  under- 
stood by  the  pupil.  With  nervous  children  it  is  some- 
times useful  just  to  get  them  to  perform  the  exercise 
and  make  the  movements  required,  so  avoiding  all 
chance  of  exciting  the  child  by  talking  much  to  him.^ 

Training  is  needed  to  cultivate  the  general  character 
of  brain  action,  bringing  its  spontaneity  under  tempo- 
rary control  (inhibition,  see  Chapter  II.),  producing 
repetition  of  action  with  some  accuracy  (retentiveness  or 
memory),  and  imitation  of  the  teacher.     Training  is  also 

1  Reference  27. 


12  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

necessary  to  enable  the  pupil  to  retain  and  reproduce 
his  impressions  in  their  order;  that  is  to  say,  they 
should  easily  hang  together  or  become  coupled  in  the 
order  in  which  they  were  received,  such  as  repeating  a 
series  of  acts  as  taught,  and  in  naming  objects  in  the 
order  in  which  they  were  seen.  He  should  learn  to  dis- 
tinguish what  he  sees  from  what  he  feels ;  colour,  size, 
as  apart  from  weight,  length  as  apart  from  bigness. 
Later  on  he  should  be  trained  to  remember,  and  sub- 
sequently to  name  and  compare,  lengths,  sizes,  and 
weights.  All  this  makes  a  basis  for  understanding  arith- 
metic hereafter.  (See  Chapters  VII.,  p.  146,  IX.,  p.  180.) 
All  children  need  cultivation  of  good  speech  and  pro- 
nunciation ;  for  this  purpose  the  child  must  learn  early 
to  look  steadily  at  the  action  of  the  teacher's  mouth, 
in  making  elementary  sounds  and  in  articulation. 

To  understand  and  remember  a  map,  the  pupil  must 
look  all  round  the  outline,  along  the  course  of  the 
rivers,  and  at  the  points  which  represent  the  site  of 
towns.  He  must  associate  looking  up  the  map  with 
"  North,"  looking  to  the  right  with  "  East  "  etc.  The 
proportion  in  distance  between  the  dots  representing 
towns,  and  lengths  of  portions  of  the  coast,  or  boundary 
lines,  can  only  be  appreciated  and  remembered  after 
training  and  practice. 

Observation  of  the  individual  pupil  should  precede 
and  accompany  his  training ;  ^   if   young,  and  full  of 

1  "  School  V^orld."     Reference  45. 


TRAINING  THE  CHILD  1 3 

spontaneity,  as  yet  uncontrolled,  you  want  to  know 
whether  he  is  best  guided  by  the  spoken  words  of 
direction,  or  through  your  gestures,  pointing,  and 
imitation ;  for  children  vary  much  in  these  particu- 
lars. He  will  stand  and  move  as  he  sees  you  do, 
and  look  towards  what  is  pointed  out,  and  then  name 
it  as  he  looks  at  your  face.  He  will  examine  objects 
or  count  them  as  he  sees  you  do,  and  in  feeling  them, 
receive  impressions  of  length,  size,  weight,  by  his 
senses  and  the  muscle-sense  of  which  I  shall  have  a 
great  deal  to  say.  Though  there  be  much  restless- 
ness, and  a  tendency  to  chatter,  he  may  imitate  your 
quiet  action ;  if  he  never  pauses  to  think,  you  may 
arrest  his  spontaneity,  momentarily  after  a  question, 
by  your  attitude  before  allowing  a  reply.  When  the 
sum  in  addition  is  inaccurate,^  see  whether  the  diffi- 
culty arises  (i)  in  looking  accurately  at  the  figures 
in  the  column  or  (2)  in  adding  the  units,  or  (3)  in 
setting  down  the  total  and  carrying ;  these  are  three 
different  brain  processes.  (See  Chapter  IX.,  p.  184.) 
Observe  any  signs  of  extra  brain  action  or  superfluous 
movements  the  while ;  do  his  fingers  twitch  on  the 
pen,  do  the  muscles  of  his  face  work ;  are  the  eyes 
moved  regularly ;  is  the  tongue  protruded  at  each  fresh 
effort ;  are  any  signs  of  fatigue  to  be  seen  ?  All 
these  manifestations  will  be  described  in  a  later 
chapter. 

1  See  "  Study  of  Children ,"  Case  2. 


14  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

Class  training  calls  for  rapid  observation  and  infer- 
ence; a  mode  of  action  often  spreads  quickly  among 
children,  especially  laughter  among  those  somewhat 
of  the  nervous  type,  by  imitation.  The  teacher's 
action,  modes  of  expression,  and  method  in  work,  im- 
part training  and  knowledge  to  the  pupils ;  at  the 
same  time  an  efficient  teacher  receives,  it  may  be  un- 
consciously, many  impressions  from  the  class  with 
which  she  is  in  sympathy ;  favourable  impressions  may 
even  be  imitated  by  the  teacher  from  her  pupils. 
Thus,  the  teacher  controls  the  class,  and  the  children 
react  upon  the  teacher.  This  adds  much  to  the 
moral  responsibilities  of  class  teaching.  I  have  often 
seen  the  signs  of  fatigue,  attitudes  and  indications  of 
lassitude,  imitated  by  boys  and  girls  from  a  teacher 
who  might  by  a  voluntary  effort  avoid  any  expres- 
sion of  weariness,  just  as  any  tendency  to  impatient 
words  and  gestures  is  suppressed  voluntarily. 

Control  of  the  school  demands  that  the  principal 
should  be  possessed  of  experience  with  a  large  grasp 
of  the  objects  of  education,  and  the  abilities  and  dis- 
abilities of  children ;  no  aspect  of  childhood  should  be 
unobserved  by  the  manager :  ^  for,  except  where  the 
school  is  a  small  one  and  the  pupils  are  selected  as 
suitable  to  its  constitution,  the  requirements  of  all  sorts 
and  conditions  of  children  call  for  due  consideration. 
The  Hygiene  of   the  schoolroom  forms   an    important 

1  Reference  50. 


MENTAL   HYGIENE  1 5 

item  in  management,  of  which  some  details  will  be  ex- 
plained later  on  in  Chapter  VI. 

It  is  mainly  of  Mental  Hygiene,  as  dealing  with  the 
mental  abilities  and  disabilities,  that  I  now  propose  to 
speak  in  relation  to  school  management ;  because  this 
may,  I  think,  assist  in  bringing  together  the  class 
teacher  and  the  principal  in  the  work  of  organising 
the  classes  and  the  school.^  A  pupil  good  at  class 
exercises  in  reading,  history,  mental  arithmetic,  and 
geography  may  be  most  inaccurate  in  transcription 
and  spelling ;  consultation  might  show  that  he  has 
good  mental  power  and  memory,  but  that  he  is  short- 
sighted; or  more  likely  inexact  in  eye-fixation,  so  that 
he  does  not  see  words  exactly.  This  is  a  common 
cause  of  such  difficulties,  needing  eye-drill,  of  which 
I  shall  speak  presently.  If  the  school  is  a  mixed  one 
receiving  boys  and  girls,  some  rules  of  discipline  can- 
not wisely  be  enforced  in  all  cases ;  while  the  boy  with 
headaches  and  sleeplessness  or  debility  may  stand  some 
strain,  there  is  apt  to  be  more  danger  under  these  con- 
ditions for  the  girl,  if  required  to  work  beyond  her 
strength.^  Here  observation  and  experience  will  indi- 
cate the  exceptional  cases  where  rules  would  be  wisely 
relaxed.  Organisation  of  the  classes  may  include 
pupils  of  about  equal   age   and   mental   ability;    they 

1  Reference  49. 

*  Recurrent  headaches.  See  British  Medical  Jot^-nal,  1879,  Dec.  6, 
and  "Brain,"  1880,  Part  XI.,  and  Reference  51. 


i6  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

will,  however,  vary  much  in  disposition  and  methods 
of  work.  This  is  probably  for  good.  Children  of  the 
nervous  type  are  gregarious ;  it  is  well  that  they  should 
associate  with  others  of  more  stoUd  type,  and,  it  may 
be,  slower  in  mental  action.  The  class  may  show  a 
tendency  for  too  much  laughter,  a  spirit  of  criticism 
of  the  teacher,  in  which  the  pupils  emulate  one  another, 
some  display  of  vanity  or  other  form  of  emotion ;  too 
much  harmony  from  mutual  imitation,  calling  for  the 
association  with  children  of  more  varied  type.  Some 
child-faults  are  difficult  to  understand.  A  boy  secretes 
things  belonging  to  another,  he  does  not  use  them, 
and  when  detected  denies  the  act;  such  cases  some- 
times depend  upon  'petit  mal'  or  slight  epileptic 
attacks ;  the  family  history  will  probably  afford  some 
explanation.  Mental  confusion  is  often  caused  by  the 
occurrence  of  spontaneous  thoughts,  and  these  are 
frequently  accompanied  by  spontaneous  movements 
which  you  can  observe ;  the  brain  then  needs  training 
to  more  methodical  action.  Mental  confusion  may  be 
due  to  many  other  causes,  which  we  shall  consider 
presently. 

Cultivation  of  healthy  mental  habits  should  begin 
early  in  training  the  brain,  before  the  use  of  words ; 
all  that  makes  for  the  health  of  the  body,  aids  growth 
and  future  power  of  the  brain ;  air,  light,  feeding,  and 
personal  comfort  in  the  surroundings.  General  liveli- 
ness and  healthy  spontaneity  may   be  encouraged  by 


TRAINING  THE  INFANT  I7 

management  of  the  infant,  while  regularity  in  the  times 
of  attention  to  all  his  wants,  and  the  times  for  sleep 
and  out-door  airings,  prepare  him  for  methodical  occu- 
pations later  on.  Early  training  of  speech,  commencing 
with  the  elementary  vocal  sounds,  may  be  tried  in  the 
second  year.  The  little  child  must  be  made  to  look 
at  your  face,  and  particularly  at  the  mouth  as  you 
make  the  sounds  he  is  to  imitate ;  then  any  power 
acquired  in  fixing  his  eyes  on  an  object  for  a  moment 
enables  baby  to  see  the  mouth  in  movement,  which  he 
partially  imitates ;  this  action  in  his  brain  becomes 
coupled  with  the  impression  of  the  sound  heard,  and 
the  expression  of  the  face  seen.  The  baby  grasps 
objects  with  either  hand,  and  with  the  two  together ; 
things  that  are  heavy  soon  fall,  thus  he  receives  many 
impressions  on  his  brain  produced  by  sight,  sound,  and 
feeling,  such  as  are  afterwards  employed  in  making 
comparison.  He  may  soon  be  controlled  in  imitating 
some  of  your  movements,  though  spontaneity  continues 
marked  the  while  in  parts  not  thus  engaged.  Any 
attempt  at  control  is  very  likely  to  be  followed  by 
some  spreading  action,  as,  a  smile  in  the  face,  or  move- 
ments in  the  hands  and  feet;  at  sight  of  you  as  you 
speak  he  may  move  all  over. 

In  the  child's  third  year  you  acquire  more  control 

over  his  brain  action  ;  he  has  more  power,  and  holds 

up  his  head  and  puts  forward  his  hand  and  moves  it 

up   and   down    as    you   do,    once,  twice,  three   times. 

c 


1 8  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

His  movements  at  first  will  not  exactly  resemble  yours 
in  the  regularity  of  time  or  degree  of  action ;  only  in 
number.  You  need  not  try  to  teach  the  numerals  as 
names ;  but  even  thus  early  you  may  produce  impres- 
sions on  his  brain  for  a  moment  or  two,  which  will 
be  useful  afterwards  in  training  him  to  count.  So  also 
colours  may  be  shown  without  being  named,  his  brain 
is  impressed  through  his  eyes,  but  we  do  not  want  yet 
to  elicit  any  choice,  comparison,  or  expression.  (See 
Chapter  X.,  p.  205.)  We  do  not  require  many  names 
for  things  or  for  expression,  rather  a  few  terms  for 
direction  and  control,  such  as  "sleep,"  when  he  is  laid 
in  bed  comfortably;  "quiet,"  as  he  sees  you  are  still; 
"good,"  when  you  are  able  to  smile  at  him. 

Still  much  remains  to  be  attempted  in  training  be- 
fore the  regular  occupations  and  teaching  of  the 
kindergarten  or  infant  school  commence;  spontaneous 
activity  should  be  increasing,  leading  to  many  impres- 
sions as  the  eyes  are  directed  to  objects,  things  are 
felt  having  size  and  weight,  actions  in  other  persons 
are  seen,  and  many  words  are  heard.  Moreover,  such 
spontaneity  indicates  the  activity  of  the  brain  which 
will  shortly  become  capable  for  the  expression  of 
organised  thought.  In  advancing  the  training  afforded, 
stage  by  stage,  exactness  in  action  as  to  time,  some- 
times uniformly  repeated,  at  other  times  varied,  brings 
the  brain  under  control  through  the  senses,  leading  to 
the  growth  of  those  characters  of  brain  action  which 


IMPRESSIONS  AND   WORDS  1 9 

are  necessary  to  mental  processes,  as  will  be  further 
explained.  The  child's  brain  is  thus  prepared  to  per- 
form the  actions  that  are  required  when  teaching  him. 
As  the  child  grows,  many  impressions  may  be  pro- 
duced and  associated  with  words ;  terms  are  wanted, 
available  as  directions  for  acts:  "sit,"  "stand,"  "throw 
the  ball "  ;  names  of  colours,  and  the  feelings  associated 
with  "light,"  "heavy,"  "short,"  "long,"  etc.  Also  as 
to  movements  of  the  eyes  and  hands,  "up,  down," 
"  right,  left,"  and  in  many  other  matters ;  as  you  pro- 
nounce a  word  the  child  tends  to  repeat  it.  (See 
Chapter  VIII.,  p.  170.)  Training  should  precede  in- 
struction, but  needs  to  be  continued  along  with  it,  as 
controlling  brain  growth  and  organisation,  and  producing 
the  impressions  dealt  with  in  teaching.  Thus  training 
in  regular  and  uniform  hand  movements  forms  a  basis 
upon  which  you  proceed  to  teach  the  numerals  in 
counting,  and  makes  the  child  feel  that  ten  movements 
are  greater  or  more  than  one.  So,  training  to  move 
his  eyes  and  to  count  enables  him  to  count  at  sight, 
while  the  use  of  numbers  as  expressed  by  the  numerals 
gradually  becomes  familiar  and  understood  before 
figures  are  used  as  symbols  in  arithmetic.  Again, 
training  the  pupil  to  feel  weights  in  his  hand  enables 
you  to  impress  their  significance;  and  he  feels  ten 
times  the  pull  from  the  ten-ounce  weight  succeeding 
that  of  one  ounce.  Later  on  he  can  understand  that 
"4  ounces  of  tea  weigh  twice  the  2-ounce  weight." 


20  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

When  a  child  has  been  practised  in  some  of  the  uses 
of  numerals,  he  may  learn  to  make  choice  of  one  object 
from  among  many — one  marble  taken  from  a  basket- 
ful—  simply  because  he  is  directed  to  take  one.  He 
should  acquire  methodical  habits  in  procedure  —  say 
a  method  in  examining  any  object  he  is  directed  to 
observe;  you  can  point  to  the  parts  of  it,  then  make 
him  do  the  same.  Take  a  post  card  and  point  to  each 
corner,  let  him  pass  his  finger  along  the  top  from  cor- 
ner to  corner,  then  down  the  side,  moving  at  the  same 
rate  —  he  will  have  felt  the  ratio  though  he  may  not 
be  able  to  express  it;  he  may  say,  "top  longer."  He 
cannot  express  the  length  of  the  top  and  the  sides  by 
numbers  till  he  has  learned  a  standard  of  measurement ; 
this  requires  experience  and  practice.  (See  Chapter 
Vin.,  p.  i6o.)  In  a  lesson  on  the  daisy  flower  there  are 
many  parts  to  look  at,  and  the  proportions  of  the  green 
bracts,  the  white  florets,  and  the  little  central  yellow 
ones  have  to  be  described.  All  the  training  previously 
given  will  help  in  part  to  prepare  the  pupil  for  further 
teaching;  so  you  progress  stage  by  stage.  I  think 
that,  in  early  years  at  least,  we  should  produce  many 
impressions  on  the  brain  such  as  I  have  shown  we  can 
control,  and  then  couple  them  with  words  in  teaching, 
and  bring  them  into  new  relations  under  further  in- 
struction. Such  training  will  assist  the  class  work  in 
reading,  arithmetic,  and  geography. 

The  advancing  pupil  must  often  be  taught  by  the 


VERBAL  TEACHING  21 

use  of  words,  not  thus  directly  connected  with  impres- 
sions which  you  can  make  on  his  brain.  In  moral 
training  you  may  teach  the  precept,  "Those  who  are 
good  will  be  happy ; "  the  boy  will  learn  this  as  he 
writes  it  in  his  copybook  and  remember  the  words; 
only  his  subsequent  impressions  from  experience  will 
make  him  really  accept  its  truth. 

As  another  example,  "  All  things  tend  to  fall  down." 
This  statement  may  easily  be  explained  when  the  child 
knows  the  meaning  of  **up,"  "down,"  and  "falling." 
Many  observations  will  agree  in  showing  that  things 
when  unsupported  do  fall ;  the  reason  of  this  or  the 
explanation  of  the  fact  will  not  be  understood  till 
much  knowledge  and  experience  have  been  acquired. 
Thus  verbal  impressions  established  early  may  gather 
strength  with  experience,  or  it  may  be  that  subsequent 
impressions  will  modify  early  teachings.  It  is  some- 
thing to  the  advantage  of  the  child  to  have  such  early 
training  as  helps  to  connect  or  arrange  his  experi- 
ences, which  may  change  in  subsequent  periods  of  life ; 
in  school  days  he  may  not  think  that  "the  good  boys 
have  the  best  time,"  with  manhood's  riper  experience 
he  may  be  convinced  the  other  way. 

Thus  it  comes  about  that  knowledge  is  largely 
founded  on  observation  and  experience,  but  equally 
important  is  the  share  that  is  due  to  method  as  im- 
planted by  training  and  teaching. 

It  is  very  desirable  that  the  teacher  should  form  a 


22  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

definite  idea  of  the  purpose  of  his  labours,  and,  in  the 
detail,  form  a  concrete  conception  of  his  aims  in  an 
individual  lesson,  their  connections  and  uses.  Each 
lesson  should  afford  some  exercise  in  training  the 
mental  faculties  for  future  use,  as  well  as  in  employing 
those  previously  established  as  a  means  of  implanting 
knowledge  and  experience. 


CHAPTER   II 

The  Brain  and  Body  in  Infancy  and  Early 
Childhood 

Many  conditions  leading  to  success  or  failure  in  the 
outcome  of  the  later  educational  years  depend  upon 
the  care  bestowed  during  infancy  and  early  childhood. 
I  speak  now  of  the  first  seven  years  of  life  as  includ- 
ing the  period  of  the  nursery  and  home-training,  rather 
than  that  of  the  school ;  it  should,  however,  be  distinctly 
understood  that  there  is  no  such  epochal  period  in 
Nature,  but  growth  and  development  in  some  direction 
or  other  occur  continuously,  though  not  uniformly  —  the 
age  period  mentioned  is  convenient  for  description,  but 
is  in  no  way  apart  from  the  responsibilities  of  later  life. 

In  infancy  growth  and  development  occur  rapidly. 
During  the  first  twelve  months  the  head  increases  from 
a  circumference  of  fifteen  inches  at  birth,  to  nineteen 
inches ;  while  the  brain  thus  grows  rapidly,  there  is  a 
proportional  evolution  of  faculty,  mostly  displayed  in 
the  movements  and  action  of  the  child.  Spontaneous 
and  almost  unceasing  movements  of  the  body  charac- 
terise this  period  of  great  brain  growth,  while  the  body 
increases  in  weight  from  seven  pounds  to  twenty 
pounds  in  the  first  year. 

23 


24  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM    OF  THE  CHILD 

The  infant  at  birth  is  not  impressionable  through  the 
senses  ;  the  most  marked  characteristics  you  will  ob- 
serve are  the  considerable  strength  of  the  muscles,  and 
the  amount  of  spontaneous  bodily  movement  alternat- 
ing with  sleep.  The  strength  of  the  muscles  is  shown 
in  grasping  your  fingers ;  this  may  be  so  firm  as  to 
enable  you  to  raise  the  infant's  body  so  that  it  is  sus- 
pended as  he  clings  to  your  hands.  The  limbs  are  at 
first  mostly  kept  flexed  or  doubled  up,  any  attempt  to 
straighten  them  out,  as  at  the  elbow,  is  strongly  re- 
sisted. The  elbows  are  mostly  kept  bent,  the  thighs  are 
folded  up  towards  the  body,  and  the  knees  bent  also ; 
such  postures  alternate  with  stretching  out  of  the  limbs 
and  movements  of  the  toes.  These  postures  return  in 
states  of  childishness.  (See  Chapter  V.,  p.  lOi.)  The 
muscles  of  the  back,  however,  are  weak ;  when  the  child 
is  placed  in  a  sitting  position  the  spine  bows  backwards, 
and  the  head  cannot  be  held  erect.  With  increasing 
strength  and  development  the  limbs  straighten  out,  the 
head  is  held  erect  and  is  moved  about,  while  later  on 
the  back  assumes  the  curves  of  the  adult. 

When  movement  is  observed  but  does  not  appear  to 
be  controlled  in  any  way  through  the  senses,  it  may  be 
called  spontaneous,  as  being  due  only  to  the  activity  or 
vivacity  of  the  brain  ;  it  is  originated  in  the  child's  brain, 
not  excited  from  the  outside.  Spontaneous  movement 
is  seen  at  the  earliest  stages  of  infancy  and  continues 
as  characteristic  of  brain  action  in  early  years  ;  this  is 


THE  INFANT  2$ 

most  marked  in  the  small  parts  of  the  body,  the  fingers 
and  toes ;  all  may  open  out  together,  or  one  digit  at  a 
time.^ 

The  photograph  shows  the  little  finger  and  toe  on 
the  left  side  moving  outwards  as  the  child  bent  forward, 
looking  at  its  father's  foot.  I  shall  have  much  to  say 
about  this  spontaneity,  and  the  brain  conditions  which 
it  indicates. 

In  early  days  short  intervals  of  wakefulness  alternate 
with  periods  of  sleep.  In  sleep  the  eyelids  close  and 
movement  subsides  except  as  to  quiet  breathing.  If 
you  gently  raise  the  eyelids  you  will  see  the  pupils 
minutely  contracted,  while  the  eyeballs  may  be  moving 
separately,  showing  brain  in  activity .^  The  brain  is  not 
acting  in  sending  out  force  to  the  muscles  during  sleep, 
circulation  of  the  blood  through  the  brain  continues,  as 
you  may  know  by  feeling  the  brain  pulsate  at  the  top 
of  the  head,  quiet  nutrition  of  the  substance  of  the 
brain  goes  on ;  this  is  indicated  by  the  infant's  liveli- 
ness when  he  awakes  refreshed. 

The  infant  needs  training  even  from  the  moment  of 
birth.  Habits  of  regularity  in  the  times  of  feeding 
and  sleeping  and  in  bodily  requirements  may  be 
established  and  lay  a  foundation  for  acquiring  further 
character,   while   towards    the   end    of    the   first  year 

^  Tracings  of  the  movements  in  "  Anatomy  of  Movement,"  p.  4.     Appa- 
ratus used  in  taking  tracings  described  in  "  Physical  Expression/'  p.  348. 
2  British  Medical  Journal,  1877,  March  loth. 


26  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

expression  may  be  elicited  and  new  lines  of  action  may 
be  formed  by  control  through  sight  and  sound  :  the 
child  hears,  sees,  and  feels.  The  great  increase  of 
brain  growth  calls  for  health  culture;  judicious  feed- 
ing, light,  cleanUness,  good  ventilation  of  the  sleeping 
rooms,  and  out  of  door  promenades  —  all  are  necessary 
to  healthy  growth  and  the  formation  of  the  faculties 
to  be  trained  in  the  second  and  succeeding  years. 

The  brain  is  an  organ  of  the  body,  just  as  the  heart 
is ;  the  parts  of  the  brain  can  act  separately  and  per- 
form different  functions.  One  portion  of  the  brain,  or 
nerve  centre,  as  it  is  called,  may  to  a  great  extent  act 
independently  of  other  parts,  while  the  various  centres 
may  act  upon  one  another.  It  has  been  established  by 
experiment  that  excitation  of  a  particular  brain  area 
may  cause  contraction  of  a  certain  group  of  muscles, 
and  thus  produce  a  special  movement,  which  is  then  an 
indication  of  the  nerve  centre  acting.  The  brain  is  the 
principal  organ  producing  the  movements  you  see  in 
the  child. 

The  brain,  like  all  living  things,  needs  a  supply 
of  nourishment ;  while  stimulation  by  sight  and  sound, 
viz.,  by  what  is  seen  and  heard,  is  necessary  for  the 
healthy  development  of  its  functions. 

You  cannot  see  the  child's  brain,  but  you  may  care- 
fully examine  the  head  which  contains  it ;  take  every 
opportunity  of  doing  so,  and  notice  the  signs  of  activity 
in  the  body   at  the  same  time.     The  head   at  birth 


CIRCULATION   IN   BRAIN  27 

measures  13.95  inches  in  circumference  in  the  male, 
and  13.57  inches  in  the  female.  The  fontanelle  is 
a  soft  spot  at  the  top  of  the  head  where  you  can 
feel  the  pulsations  of  the  brain  as  it  receives  blood  from 
the  heart  through  the  arteries ;  you  will  not  be  able  to 
feel  this  fontanelle  when  the  child  has  reached  school 
age.  The  soft  spot  is  a  space  between  the  bones  of  the 
forehead  and  those  forming  the  sides  of  the  brain 
case ;  it  is  closed  in  by  a  membrane  and  covered  by  the 
scalp ;  the  surface  here  should  be  gently  convex,  not 
flat  or  sunken  in,  but  continuing  the  general  rotundity 
of  the  head.  In  an  infant  five  or  six  months  old 
you  will  feel  pulsation,  due  to  the  amount  of  blood 
pumped  into  the  brain,  which  swells  up ;  this  pulsation 
is  also  to  be  felt  during  sleep,  showing  that  circulation 
in  the  brain  continues  during  rest.  When  the  infant 
is  weak  or  ill  the  fontanelle  sinks  in  from  feebleness 
of  the  circulation  in  the  brain,  and  at  the  same  time 
spontaneity  of  movement  subsides,  —  the  child  is  too 
motionless.  A  good  circulation  in  the  brain  is  nec- 
essary to  its  activity.  Besides  the  pulsation  in  the 
head  due  to  the  heart-beats,  you  may  feel  extra  rising 
of  the  fontanelle  with  each  act  of  breathing,  while  when 
the  baby  cries  and  gets  red  in  the  face,  it  swells  up 
from  the  extra  blood  in  the  brain.  Full  movements 
of  the  chest,  as  well  as  the  heart-beats,  promote  brain 
circulation.  The  fontanelle  gradually  closes  up  by  the 
growth  of  the  bones  around  it.     It  is  largest  at  about 


28  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

the  seventh  month  and  is  not  to  be  felt  after  the  first 
year. 

The  head  enlarges  with  brain  growth,  its  circumfer- 
ence increasing  to  19  inches  at  the  end  of  twelve 
months.  The  brain  at  birth  weighs  11.67  ounces  in 
males  and  10  ounces  in  females,  and  at  from  six  to 
twelve  months  it  weighs  27.40  ounces  in  males,  25.70 
ounces  in  females.^  In  this  rapid  growth  of  the  brain 
during  the  first  year  you  see  the  way  in  which  care 
for  the  health  of  the  infant  prepares  the  material 
structures  upon  which  the  benefits  of  training  and 
education  are  to  be  implanted. 

You  should  also  look  at  the  chest  of  the  infant,  and 
the  movements  of  breathing.  The  chest  is  the  cavity 
containing  the  lungs  and  the  heart;  it  is  formed  by 
the  ribs,  which  are  attached  to  the  spine  behind  and 
to  the  breast-bone  (sternum)  in  front.  The  movements 
of  breathing  expand  the  chest  and  draw  air  into  the 
lungs  through  the  nose.  In  form  the  chest  is  slightly 
conical,  smallest  at  the  collar  bones,  with  its  largest 
circumference  towards  the  middle  of  the  body.  There 
should  be  no  flatness  at  the  sides,  nor  any  sinking  in 
of  the  walls  at  any  point  as  the  breath  is  drawn  in. 
The  average  girth  of  the  chest  is  at  birth  13.25  (males) 
and  12.65  (females)  in  inches;  at  five  years,  21.40 
inches;  at  seven  years,  22.54  inches.^ 

1  Tables  of  brain  weights,  see  "  Study  of  Children,"  p.  33, 
'^  Further  account,  see  op.  cit.^  Chapter  II. 


GROWTH   OF  CHILD  29 

The  lungs  are  the  organs  used  in  oxygenating  the 
blood  which  circulates  through  them ;  their  full  ex- 
pansion during  early  life  is  important,  and  like  the 
brain  they  grow  rapidly.  The  average  weight  of  the 
lungs  at  birth  is  about  2.7  ounces,  and  at  five  to  seven 
years  about  9  ounces. 

At  about  the  ninth  month  teething  begins ;  the  pro- 
cess may  give  much  trouble.  When  commencing 
practice  I  carried  and  used  a  gum-lancet,  but  experi- 
ence showed  me  that  most  of  the  disorders  attending 
this  period  are  due  to  want  of  proper  hygienic  care, 
or  bad  feeding  and  the  use  of  starchy  foods,  as  well 
as  other  preventable  causes.^ 

Towards  the  end  of  the  first  year,  the  child  will 
begin  to  imitate  action  in  other  persons,  and  to  some 
extent  becomes  controllable,  so  that  he  may  be  trained 
to  make  some  of  the  elementary  sounds  of  speech  and 
the  movements  used  in  walking ;  of  course  without 
allowing  him  to  rest  his  weight  on  his  feeto 

Throughout  childhood,  habits  need  training ;  much 
may  be  done  with  the  infant  by  regularity  in  the  time 
for  all  things,  and  also  in  attention  to  health,  in  feed- 
ing, cleanliness,  good  ventilation,  light,  and  daily 
promenades.  The  brain  grows  and  the  lungs  grow  as 
well  as  the  body  and  the  bones ;  the  child  may  easily 
be  spoilt  in  the  first  year  from  want  of  attention  to 
the  health  of  the  body  and  the  brain.     Regularity  in 

1  See  "  Study  of  Children,"  Chapter  XII. 


30  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

feeding  has  much  to  do  with  promoting  proper  digeS' 
tion  and  establishing  good  habits;  meals  should  be 
supplied  at  stated  intervals  ;  feeding  the  infant  because 
he  cries  is  a  bad  habit,  easily  encouraged.  Uniform 
times  for  lying  down  and  for  airing  out  of  doors,  as 
well  as  for  playing  with  his  mother,  help  to  form  good 
habits  in  the  child. 

General  playfulness  and  liveliness  may  be  encouraged 
by  talking  to  the  child ;  he  will  play  with  toys,  which 
should  be  few  and  selected,  he  will  grasp  them,  transfer 
them  from  one  hand  to  the  other,  or  seize  them  with 
both  hands,  generally  conveying  all  things  to  his 
mouth,  though  objects  are  soon  dropped. 

The  infant  develops  into  the  young  pupil;  spon- 
taneous brain  action  is  abundant  as  expressed  in  much 
movement  and  in  chattering;  there  is  also  some 
capacity  for  control  through  the  senses,  guidance  of 
action  under  verbal  direction,  and,  what  is  most  im- 
portant to  early  training,  growth  of  the  faculty  of 
imitation. 

These  characters  of  the  brain  all  demand  cultivation 
and  training,  they  interact  on  one  another;  and  each 
has  its  place  in  the  development  of  mental  faculty 
and  capacity  for  instruction.  Retentiveness  of  im- 
pressions and  the  modes  of  their  interaction  or  mem- 
ory come  later.  It  will  now  be  found  that  the  larger 
brained  children  have  more  aptitude,  while  those 
with  little  heads  are  more  delicate.     The   very   quiet 


CONTROL   OF  THE  CHILD  3 1 

child  may  be  good  and  give  but  little  trouble;  the 
stronger  child  has  so  much  spontaneity  that,  till  con- 
trollable and  capable  of  guidance,  his  activities  may 
interfere  with  good  order  and  quietness ;  still  the  con- 
dition is  hopeful. 

In  the  years  of  school  life  the  acquired  power  of 
self-control  under  guidance  of  impressions  received  in 
training,  with  memory  for  modes  of  procedure,  direc- 
tions, and  principles  previously  taught,  together  with 
experience,  gained  and  retained,  give  some  intellectual 
ability,  and  begin  to  build  up  a  basis  of  character 
which  has  been  developed  stage  by  stage,  leading  to 
capacity  for  duties  in  voluntary  action  or  obedience, 
and  to  consideration  of  circumstances  and  the  well- 
being  of  other  persons. 

We  shall  see  examples  of  such  activities  when  de- 
scribing the  general  character  of  brain  action,  and  in 
some  brain  moods  and  their  reversion  to  a  childish 
status  in  school  children. 

It  is  useful  to  separate  what  it  is  actually  in  our 
power  to  do  with  the  infant  and  the  child,  from  what 
we  try  to  make  his  brain  perform.  We  can,  as  shown, 
do  much  to  encourage  regular  times  of  sleep ;  we 
cannot  make  the  child  rest.  We  can  prevent  him 
from  injuring  himself  with  unsafe  objects,  but  cannot 
make  him  feed  himself  till  he  has  acquired  coordi- 
nated movements ;  we  cannot  make  him  walk,  but 
can  direct  the  movements  of  his  limbs  or  prevent  him 


32  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

from  walking.  We  can  guide  the  pupil's  hand  in 
drawing  or  writing,  or  we  may  attempt  to  get  his  brain 
to  do  as  we  do  in  imitating  our  movements  for  physical 
exercises.  At  all  stages  the  child  should  be  childlike 
for  his  age;  we  do  not  wish  him  to  be  precocious. 

The  rapidly  developing  brain  is  here  our  chief 
concern,  and  will  now  be  described  in  speaking  of  the 
general  character  of  brain  action. 

The  condition,  status,  and  working  capacity  of  the 
brain  may  be  early  observed  and  described  by  care- 
fully noting  the  expression,  movement,  balance  of  the 
body  and  its  parts,  and  the  response  in  action  elicited 
through  the  senses.  These  are  the  direct  outcome 
and  signs  of  action  occurring  in  the  parts  of  the  nerve 
system  (the  nerve  centres).  It  must  be  remembered 
that  all  mental  action  is  expressed  by  movement  and 
its  results ;  whether  it  be  spoken  or  written  words,  in 
action  and  in  doing  things,  or  by  gestures  and  facial 
expression.^ 

On  these  matters  I  have  written  recently  in  School 
World'^  and  am  indebted  to  the  Editor  for  per- 
mission to  quote  from  these  articles. 

The  general  characters  of  brain  action  may  be  de- 
scribed under  ten  headings ;  some  only  will  be  seen  in 
early  infancy,  others  evolve  later,  but  all  will  need 
cultivation. 

1  Reference  2. 

2  School  World —  January  to  April,  1899.     Macmillan  &  Co. 


CHARACTERS   OF   BRAIN   ACTION  33 

(i)  Spontaneity  in  brain  action  for  movement  is 
characteristic  of  the  infant,  and  is  proportioned  to  the 
circulation  as  felt  at  the  fontanelle.  You  see  spon- 
taneity in  the  child  when  you  observe  changeful  ex- 
pression on  his  face  or  smiling  about  the  mouth 
spreading  upwards  around  the  eyes  to  the  forehead, 
apparently  of  self-contained  origin,  not  stimulated  by 
what  he  sees  or  hears  at  the  time.  The  eyes  may 
turn  to  either  side  without  being  directed  to  you  or 
any  particular  object,  the  movements  may  be  up  and 
down,  as  is  often  seen  when  thinking.  The  hands 
may  show  much  spontaneity  of  finger  movements, 
either  as  they  hang  by  the  sides,  or  when  held  out 
straight  in  front,  on  direction  to  do  so.  The  feet  may 
be  shifted,  the  shoulders  shrugged,  and  the  head 
turned  about  without  apparent  cause  other  than  spon- 
taneous restlessness.  There  may  be  also  spontaneous 
or  uncontrolled  utterances.  All  these  movements 
represent  healthy  activity  in  the  young  brain,  as  long 
as  the  spontaneity  is  controllable ;  each  act  seen 
corresponds  to  the  action  of  some  brain  centre. 
Spontaneity  in  movement  lessens  at  seven  or  eight 
years  of  age  as  coordinated  action  gradually  increases 
towards  adolescence;  while  in  mental  action  spon- 
taneity remains  till  the  brain  degenerates.^ 

Many  thoughts  in  children's  minds  appear  to  arise 

^  Muscular  movements  in  man,  and  their  evolution  in  the  infant.  Jour- 
nal of  Mental  Science,  London,  April,  1889. 


34  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

spontaneously ;  "  imaginations,"  such  as  building  up 
fairy  stories,  imaginary  conversations,  the  doings  of 
dolls  and  animals ;  thoughts  in  great  part,  at  least, 
not  controlled  by  what  is  heard  or  seen  around.  So 
in  adult  life  ;  we  think  many  thoughts  other  than  those 
directly  due  to  impressions  of  what  we  see  and  hear, 
thoughts  arise  in  the  mind  (or  in  the  brain)  indepen- 
dently of  the  senses.  This  faculty  of  self-contained  or 
spontaneous  thinking  lasts  later  in  the  life  of  the  brain 
than  the  spontaneous  vivacity  of  movement  in  the  body. 
The  adult  is  quieter  in  action  than  the  child,  but  per- 
haps more  self-originated  thoughts  arise  in  the  mind, 
such  as  ideas  of  philosophy  and  those  expressed  in 
poetry. 

Spontaneous  action  may  be  subnormal ;  it  is  lost 
in  illness,  and  is  often  absent  in  the  child  with  a 
deficient  brain.  In  chorea,  or  St.  Vitus' s  dance,  it  is 
excessive,  also  in  some  brain  conditions  of  reversion  of 
childishness,  the  fidgetiness  of  fatigue,  and  in  irritable 
peevishness.  Spontaneous  movement  may  be  uni- 
formly repetitive,  seen  in  "  fixed  habits,"  frowning,  grin- 
ning, grimaces,  and  other  subnormal  action  that  will 
be  described  in  the  next  chapter.  In  any  case,  each 
spontaneous  movement  as  you  see  it,  is  due  to,  and  indi- 
cates, discharge  of  nerve  force  from  a  nerve  centre  or 
portion  of  the  brain.' 

(2)  Impressionability  of  the  brain  is  not  marked  in 

*  See  Diagram  of  Brain,  "  Study  of  Children,"  p.  37. 


IMPRESSIONABILITY   AND   INHIBITION  35 

the  infant  at  birth,  and  there  appears  then  to  be  no 
control  through  sight  or  hearing;  it  is,  however,  af- 
fected by  warmth,  and  by  cold  as  well  as  hunger, 
which  cause  crying.  When  three  or  four  months 
old  a  marked  impression  may  be  produced  by  sight 
and  sound  in  momentarily  inhibiting  movement ;  while 
later,  such  stimulation  and  inhibition  is  followed  by 
controllable  action.  The  child  devoid  of  impression- 
ability is  ineducable,  and  those  without  sight,  or  deaf, 
are  at  a  great  disadvantage  from  absence  of  such 
paths  for  brain  guidance.  Much  will  be  said  here- 
after as  to  different  modes  of  producing  impression 
on  the  brain,  and  the  interaction  of  impressions  in 
various  ways.  Impressionability  may  be  indicated 
by  any  of  the  remaining  general  characters.  (3-10.) 
(3)  Inhibition  of  movement^  is  seen  in  the  infant  of 
four  or  five  months,  when  spontaneous  action  is  mo- 
mentarily arrested  under  the  stimulus  of  some  sight 
or  sound ;  this  may  be  followed  by  reappearance  of 
movement  as  before,  even  if  the  stimulus  continues, 
or  it  may  be  succeeded  by  some  new  line  of  action. 
The  baby's  fingers  may  simply  keep  still  for  a  few 
seconds,  or,  the  hand  may  move  towards  the  object 
seen,  while  the  fingers  then  grasp  it ;  such  prehen- 
sile act  is  called  a  coordinated  (or  regulated)  move- 
ment. 

1  The  study  of  cerebral  inhibition,  Brain,  1888,  XLIII.,  Macmillan; 
zxidi  Journal  of  Mental  Science,  1889,  with  tracing. 


36  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

Action  such  as  I  have  just  described  corresponds 
to  the  first  mental  attitude  of  attention.  I  hope  the 
reader  will  look  for  himself  at  some  infants,  and 
notice  this  most  interesting  and  important  sign  of 
dawning  mental  power. 

You  ask  the  pupil  a  question ;  he  pauses  a  moment, 
and  is  still :  if  he  answers  in  reply  to  your  direction 
you  know  that  some  brain  process  of  thinking  occurred 
during  the  period  of  inhibition. 

The  pause  period  does  not  then  mean  absence  of 
brain  activity  —  as  in  sleep  —  but  a  new  kind  of  action 
among  the  brain  centres.  The  mere  arrest  of  move- 
ment in  young  children  is  not  necessarily  "  attention  "  ; 
they  may  stand  still  without  either  thinking  or  mov- 
ing. The  faculty  of  inhibition  of  movement  becomes 
rapidly  manifested  under  good  training. 

(4)  Control  through  the  senses.  —  In  the  infant,  con- 
trol by  sight  and  by  sound  are  seen  in  any  coordinate 
action  following;  such  as  grasping  an  object  within 
view,  or  turning  his  head  to  the  speaker ;  but  at  this 
stage,  control  is  very  temporary.  When  you  are 
able  to  arrest  spontaneous  movements  of  fidgetiness 
you  have  clearly  produced  some  impression  on  the 
child ;  but  unless  more  than  this  is  effected,  it  can 
hardly  be  said  that  you  have  controlled  the  brain. 
You  wish  to  guide  the  child,  and  to  train  new  and  use- 
ful action  in  harmony  with  the  surroundings,  and  to 
enable   him   to  do   as  others  do  and  to  think  as  you 


MUSCLE   SENSE  37 

think.  Such  control  of  the  brain  may  be  established 
through  sight  and  hearing.  The  effects  of  control 
are  seen  in  action  adapted  by  what  the  child  hears, 
or  what  he  sees  in  objects  or  the  written  page.  Control, 
like  all  means  of  training,  is  usually  in  part  an  inhibition 
(or  partial  arrest)  of  spontaneity ;  when  you  get  the 
controlled  action  wanted,  there  may  still  be  some 
spontaneity  accompanying  it.  If  the  pupil  responds 
to  you,  perhaps  it  does  not  matter  if  he  fidgets,  and 
moves  his  hands  while  so  doing;  you  guide  and  con- 
trol spontaneous  action  without  subduing  it.  Control 
of  brain  action,  or,  the  discipline  of  c  ass,  is  sometimes 
better  effected  through  sight  than  by  hearing ;  when 
the  child  is  restless  on  being  spoken  to  he  may  quietly 
obey  your  looks  or  gesture.  Imitation  is  a  form  of 
control  mainly  effected  by  sight,  especially  at  sight  of 
action  in  the  teacher  or  in  classmates. 

(5)  Control  through  muscle-sense. — The  literature  of 
education  contains  many  references  to  training  the 
hand  and  the  eye  and  the  senses,  as  well  as  to  the 
importance  of  exercising  the  muscles  in  drill,  gym- 
nastics, and  games.  I  do  not  think  that  the  control 
of  the  brain  by  impressions  received  from  the  muscles 
—  or  muscle  sense  —  has  been  sufficiently  considered  as 
a  means  of  brain  training  and  a  method  of  use  in  edu- 
cating mental  ability.     (See  Chapter  VII.,  p.  145.) 

Muscle  sense  in  movement  may  produce  impressions 
on  the  brain ;    as  in  a  hand   and   finger   action  when 


38  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

feeling  the  size  and  dimensions  of  an  object,  or  in 
moving  the  hand  to  point  out  objects  and  parts  of 
them.  Any  action  in  movement  is  caused  by  the  con- 
traction of  muscles,  which  not  only  produce  what  we 
see,  but  also  send  stimulus  up  to  the  brain  and  pro- 
duce an  impression  on  it.  Movements  of  the  eyes  in 
counting,  or  in  following  the  outline  of  a  map,  or  the 
figure  drawn  on  the  blackboard,  thus  produce  impres- 
sions by  muscle  sense. 

Muscle  sense  in  tension  is  another  means  of  con- 
trolling the  brain  and  producing  impressions.  The 
tension  or  strain  in  a  muscle  when  contracting  and 
overcoming  a  resistance  is  felt  by  the  brain ;  this 
occurs  when  a  weight  is  held  in  the  hand,  the  muscle 
sense  in  tension  being  affected  in  proportion  to  the 
weight.  Exercise  in  thus  appreciating  weights  by  feel- 
ing them  is  most  useful  in  training  the  pupil  to 
understand  "addition"  and  "proportion,"  which  he 
may  thus  be  made  to  feel. 

It  is  not  easy  to  test  muscle  sense  till  some  means 
of  expression  has  been  acquired  by  the  child.  This 
faculty  is  indicated  in  the  pupil  who  counts  objects  or 
marks  on  the  blackboard  —  either  at  sight,  by  moving 
his  eyes  (by  use  of  the  muscles  of  the  eye-balls)  or  his 
fingers  in  pointing ;  or  again  as  he  counts  on  his  own 
fingers,  bending  them  one  after  another ;  also  in  meas- 
uring distance  or  dimensions  by  sight  or  feeling.  Both 
the  size  and  the  weight  of  objects  are  thus  estimated 


BRAIN  CENTRES   INTERACTING  39 

by  muscle  sense,  while  weight  can  be  discriminated 
from  size  after  practice. 

(6)  Compound  brain  action,  or  compound  cerebration, 
is  a  most  interesting  process  to  watch  in  the  young 
child;  as  this  faculty  develops,  it  begins  to  afford  the 
basis  of  brain  action  leading  to  mental  power.  An 
impression  made  on  the  brain  through  the  senses  may 
stimulate  two  or  three  nerve  centres,  which,  after  send- 
ing out  nerve  currents,  may  become  quiescent  and 
rest  again.  The  centres  thus  secondarily  stimulated 
may  act  in  similar  manner,  becoming  quiet  in  their 
turn ;  thus  there  is  not  an  ever  increasing  amount  of 
brain  action ;  but  the  first  group  of  nerve  centres  stim- 
ulates the  second,  and  the  second  acts  on  the  third, 
—  so  that  finally  an  adapted  action  in  movement  or 
expression  results. 

This  is  very  analogous  to  a  trained  set  of  impres- 
sions or  thoughts,  as  a  process  established  in  the 
brain,  where  the  question  or  direction  leads  to 
thoughts  arising  in  order,  during  a  pause;  the  final 
result  being  expressed  in  response.  The  pupil,  who 
has  previously  been  taught,  is  told  to  examine  a  seed- 
ling pea  that  has  been  sprouted  in  damp  moss ;  he 
holds  it  and  removes  the  case  with  a  needle,  divides 
its  parts,  the  two  cotyledons,  the  stem  and  the  root, 
finally  placing  each  part  in  order  on  a  card.  Here 
one  act  follows  another  in  the  order  taught;  centre 
after  centre  in  his  brain  acts  and  then  rests  —  if  every- 


40  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

thing  is  attempted  at  once  the  object  is  smashed.  Thus 
a  series  of  acts  is  performed  one  after  another  in  order, 
involving  the  fingers  and  eyes  of  the  child ;  the  whole 
action  followed  a  very  slight  stimulus ;  viz.,  the  verbal 
direction  of  the  teacher.  So  a  hand  exercise  learnt 
may  be  repeated,  act  after  act,  without  confusion  or 
guidance. 

In  such  examples  of  compound  cerebration  there  is 
interaction  of  parts  of  the  brain  on  one  another, 
whether  under  continued  guidance,  or  following  a 
simpler  direction  and  the  results  of  former  training.^ 
Interaction  of  one  brain  centre  upon  another  may  be 
inferred  when  the  expression  seen  differs  greatly  from 
the  sensory  impression  which  it  follows,  but  at  the  same 
time  is  clearly  adapted  by  it.  When  the  child  simply 
imitates  your  movements,  each  separate  act  is  guided  by 
sight,  there  is  no  necessary  interaction  among  the 
centres ;  when  the  exercise  is  repeated  from  memory, 
the  centres  react  on  one  another  in  the  repeated  order. 
This  process  of  compound  action  among  brain  centres 
is  not  observed  in  the  young  infant,  it  is  only  developed 
gradually,  and  built  up  in  the  child  as  the  faculty  of 
retentiveness  grows  and  is  cultivated.  Habits  and 
modes  of  procedure  in  action  are  established  by  train- 
ing, and  thoughts  are  learnt  in  order  as  taught ;  this  is 
physiologically  represented  in  the  brain  by  established 
modes  of  order  in  action. 

^  References  2  and  6, 


BRAIN  IMPRESSIONS   RETAINED  41 

(7)  Retentiveness  in  the  brain  is  shown  by  movements 
when  a  physical  exercise  is  readily  repeated  in  each 
act  of  a  series,  and  in  orderly  habits  carried  out  punctu- 
ally ;  also  in  a  series  of  words  or  thoughts  remembered. 
It  is  probable  that  retention  of  the  arrangements  in  the 
brain  centres,  both  for  series  of  movements  and 
thoughts,  depends  upon  similar  physiological  conditions ; 
viz.,  the  establishment  of  nerve  paths  between  the 
centres,  by  which  nerve  currents  pass  from  one  to  the 
other  in  order,  calling  them  into  successive  activity. 
Retention  of  the  terms  of  direction  used  in  control- 
ling a  child,  coupled  with  the  action  intended,  is  im- 
portant; the  words  of  command  should  be  uniformly 
used,  and  heard  distinctly,  to  be  followed  by  the  action 
directed.  In  this  way  terms  of  direction  become  useful 
means  of  self-contained  control,  in  cultivating  voluntary 
power  later  on.  Retentiveness  much  depends  upon  the 
distinct  and  definite  or  accurate  reception  of  the  impres- 
sion to  be  retained.  If  the  child  is  to  remember  where  to 
find  his  books,  he  should  look  at  them  and  see  them  in 
their  place,  when  he  has  put  them  there ;  if  he  is  to 
remember  the  order  of  the  numerals  he  must  hear 
each  word  distinctly ;  and,  better,  feel  movements  for 
each  number  named.  Retentiveness  is  not  seen  in  the 
earliest  infant  stages ;  it  may  be  cultivated  in  the  child 
by  regularity  in  habits  and  in  the  order  of  doing  things. 
Retentiveness  may  lead  to  persistence  in  doing  some- 
thing, or  continuing  to  do  it  too  long.    When  a  class  of 


42  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

children  are  told  to  hold  out  hands,  some  persist  in  doing 
so  after  the  rest  have  dropped  theirs ;  thus  the  action  in 
the  brain  is  retained. 

Memory  is  a  form  of  brain  retentiveness  both  for 
words  and  action  ;  thus  the  teacher  draws  a  map  on 
the  blackboard  and  points  out  the  site  of  the  principal 
towns,  while  the  pupils  reproduce  the  map  at  home. 

(8)  Coordinated  action.  —  As  to  movement,  this  implies 
regulation  of  each  act  in  the  series  of  movements 
brought  about  at  first  by  control  through  the  senses. 
You  throw  a  ball  at  a  boy ;  he  catches  it  and  throws  it 
back ;  the  sight  of  you  and  then  of  the  ball  quickly 
advancing  so  determines  the  order  of  his  brain  centres 
in  producing  his  movements  that  this  well  coordinated 
action  follows.  Practice  makes  him  more  apt  in  catch- 
ing the  ball,  the  nerve  mechanism  for  executing  the 
required  action  works  more  and  more  accurately ;  this 
rapid  advance  in  coordinated  ability  is  a  good  indica- 
tion for  future  mental  capacity. 

In  training  this  faculty  of  coordination  under  guid- 
ance, the  nerve  centres  exercised  thereby  become 
gradually  connected  by  nerve  paths,  so  that  the  action 
is  easily  and  accurately  repeated ;  or,  as  we  say  here, 
compound  cerebration  is  built  up,  and  the  action  called 
for  may  follow  a  simple  direction.  Impressions  on  the 
brain  and  thoughts  may  be  similarly  coordinated ; 
when  you  point  out  the  parts  of  an  object  two  or  three 
times  over,  the  child  looking  at  each  in  succession  will 


EXPRESSION  OF   EMOTION  43 

at  last  remember  all  that  has  been  shown  him.  Co- 
ordinated action,  when  often  repeated,  tends  to  be 
retained,  but  at  first  it  will  be  accompanied  in  expres- 
sion by  some  spontaneous  movements  in  a  young  child ; 
still,  if  effectual  control  is  established,  that  is  all  that 
we  need  look  for. 

In  the  infant,  a  little  after  inhibition  is  first  observed 
—  that  is,  about  the  fifth  month  —  coordinated  action  is 
seen,  when  at  sight  of  an  object  the  hand  is  moved 
towards  it  and  the  fingers,  first  opening,  then  grasp  it. 
It  is  here  that  spontaneity,  controlled  and  regulated, 
leads  on  to  the  more  precise  coordinated  action.  We 
thus  see  that  inhibition,  succeeded  by  some  coordina- 
tion of  movement  becoming  gradually  more  exact,  leads 
on  to  the  retention  of  order  in  action  among  the  nerve 
centres,  and  the  dawning  signs  of  compound  cerebration, 
indicating  faculty  for  intelligence.^ 

(9)  Spreading  area  of  movement.  —  Visible  action  may 
spread  without  control,  or  as  the  result  of  stimulus  by 
sight,  sound,  or  feeling.  A  smile  may  spread  in  the 
face,  following  some  spontaneous  thought;  this  may 
pass  on  to  widening  of  the  mouth,  half  closure  of 
the  eyes,  turning  of  the  head,  and  movements  of  the 
hands  and  fingers  till,  in  a  burst  of  laughter,  the  whole 
body  seems  to  take  part.  When  the  child  is  told  to 
make  a  calculation  in  mental  arithmetic,  the  tongue  may 
be  protruded,  then  the  eyebrows  contracted,  the  head 

^  Reference  5. 


44  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

and  eyes  turned  upwards,  while  movements  are  also 
seen  about  the  mouth  and  lips.  When  a  child's  finger 
is  hurt,  the  angles  of  the  mouth  become  depressed  and 
its  line  arched  downwards,  the  brows  knit,  and  the 
forehead  crumpled,  with  the  eyelids  closed;  while  the 
fingers  are  much  moved  and  the  respirations  disturbed, 
the  child  growing  red  in  the  face ;  finally  his  closed  fists 
are  pressed  to  his  eyes  and  he  cries  aloud.  So,  in  a 
storm  of  passion,  the  boy  turns  his  head  and  eyes 
towards  a  schoolfellow,  the  canine  tooth  on  that  side 
is  uncovered,  the  eyelids  are  retracted,  a  conflict  of 
muscular  action  about  the  mouth  may  cause  the  lips  to 
twitch.  Breathing  quickens,  the  face,  at  first  pale,  now 
flushes,  the  chest  is  fixed,  the  fists  clenched,  and  he  hits 
out.  In  other  instances,  in  place  of  rapidly  spreading 
area  of  movement  seen  in  expression  of  emotion,  a 
uniform  trick  or  habit  is  observed  accompanying  any 
mental  effort ;  the  tongue  may  be  protruded  when  the 
child  is  spoken  to  ;  the  head  moved  to  one  side,  some 
uniform  grimace  may  be  seen,  or  the  feet  may  be 
shifted.  Stammering  is  a  spreading  muscular  spasm 
attendant  on  pronouncing  certain  sounds.^ 

In  all  cases  the  spreading  area  of  movement  ob- 
served indicates  a  nerve  centre  discharging  its  nerve 
currents  to  more  than  one  brain  centre,  and  then  not 
resting ;  so  that  the  nerve  currents  become  reinforced 
or  strengthened  as  they  pass  from  one  nerve  cell  to  an- 

1  "Study  of  Children,"  pp.  95,  115, 117. 


EXPRESSION  BY   MOVEMENT  45 

other  over  a  widening  area  of  the  brain,  finally  proceed- 
ing to  the  muscles  which  produce  the  movements  seen 
as  expressing  the  brain  action  occurring  in  emotion. 
This  represents  a  superfluity  of  brain  action  in  move- 
ment. 

(10)  Response  of  the  brain  to  some  stimulus  is  seen 
in  the  movement  following  an  impression  through  the 
senses.  An  object  comes  within  view  of  the  infant ; 
the  act  of  seizing  it  which  follows  shows  early  re- 
sponse in  his  brain,  producing  the  movement.  It  has 
already  been  said  there  may  be  a  pause  between  the 
sensory  stimulus  and  its  expression ;  you  may  observe 
an  interval  between  the  eyes  turning  to  the  object,  and 
its  being  grasped.  When  a  question  is  asked,  there 
is  an  interval  before  the  reply,  if  thinking  takes 
place ;  the  brain-processes  corresponding  to  thoughts 
occupy  time.  The  response,  either  in  movement  or 
any  mode  of  expression,  may  be  delayed. 

Thus  modes  of  brain  action  indicated  by  movements 
which  you  may  observe,  have  been  described  as  repre- 
senting different  kinds  of  action  among  the  brain 
centres,  which  will  be  found  to  correspond  with  various 
mental  states,  affording  faculties,  all  of  which  need 
cultivation  and  training.  It  was  convenient  thus  to 
commence  with  some  description  of  the  brain  in 
infancy  and  childhood,  by  speaking  of  the  kinds  or 
classes  of  action,  instead  of  giving  detailed  signs ;  be- 
cause, as  each  class  is  expressed  in  many  ways,  they 


46  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

must  be  more  or  less  familiar  to  you  from  associating 
with  children,  and  some  points  referable  to  each  class 
may  have  previously  attracted  your  attention,  so  that 
you  can  recognise  their  place  in  this  classification.  A 
case  is  here  given  in  illustration :  — 

A  Bright,  Healthy  Boy  Ten  Years  Old 

1 .  Spontaneity.  —  Playful.  Expression  bright,  often  changing ; 

eyes  much  moved.     No  frowning.     Finger  movements. 
Talkative. 

2.  Impressionability.  —  Looks  at  what  is  shown  him,  quiet 

when    spoken   to,   and  looks    at    teacher.      Generally 
obedient. 

3.  Inhibition.  —  Is  quiet  when  called  upon  in  class ;  after  a 

short  pause  replies  to  question  put,  then  looks  at  others 
in  class.     He  stops  to  think. 

4.  Control.  —  When  looking  about,  is  better  controlled  by 

a  gesture  than  a  word.     Prompt  in  physical  exercises. 
Answers  something  to  each  question. 

5.  Muscle  sense.  —  Expresses  fairly  the  weight  of  coins  felt; 

can  compare  lengths  at  sight  well,  and  count  objects. 
Good  at  games. 

6.  Compound  cerebration.  —  Free  hand  exercises  performed 

under  guidance  or  without  it.     His  thoughts  are  be- 
coming orderly  and  systematic. 

7.  Retentiveness. — Each  of  his  movements  and  their  order 

exact  in  physical  exercises.     Good  memory  for  vocabu- 
lary and  poetry. 

8.  Coordination.  —  His    movements   are  well   regulated   and 

orderly  ;  so  are  his  thoughts  for  subjects  he  has  been 
taught,  as  rules  of  arithmetic. 


A  BRIGHT  BOY  47 

9.  Spreading  action.  —  Seen  in  his  playfulness  after  school ; 
in  fidgeting  during  lesson.  He  asks  questions  not 
appropriate  to  the  lesson  sometimes. 
10.  Response  delayed. —  Interval  between  question  and  an- 
swer becomes  longer  when  fatigued;  also  when  he  is 
slow  in  thinking  out  the  reply. 


CHAPTER   III 

The  Child  at  School 

When  the  pupil  is  received  into  the  school  his 
proper  class  place  may  be  wisely  determined  by  some 
observation  of  the  child,  as  well  as  a  brief  mental  ex- 
amination. It  is  in  the  observation  of  the  general  char- 
acters of  brain  action,  as  described  in  the  last  chapter, 
that  a  rapid  judgment  may  best  be  formed  as  a  first 
aid  in  school  classification.  To  determine  the  indi- 
vidual status  of  the  child,  including  his  abilities  and 
special  needs  in  training,  detailed  points  must  be  de- 
scribed, such  as  will  afford  indications  of  the  manage- 
ment wanted  in  class  training ;  it  will  be  seen  in  the 
next  chapter  that  the  class  teacher  may  obtain  much 
help  in  understanding  his  pupil  from  a  detailed  descrip- 
tion :  this  serves  to  guide  his  own  further  observations 
and  experience.  When  the  children  in  a  class  are 
known  in  this  way,  observations  will  soon  accumulate, 
and  experience  will  be  gained  for  the  establishment 
of  a  Mental  Hygiene,  and  also  in  employing  the  prin- 
ciples of  physiological  mental  science  as  an  aid  to 
educational  methods.  In  subsequently  studying  the 
records  thus  obtained,  and  the  various  faculties  making 

48 


OBSERVATION   OF  CHILDREN  49 

up  the  sum  of  the  brain  capacity  of  children,  we  shall 
see  the  needs  of  infancy  preparing  for  childhood,  and 
of  the  child  developing  to  adolescence  and  manhood 
or  womanhood. 

The  results  of  my  observations  of  one  hundred 
thousand  children  in  schools  have  been  analysed  and 
classed  in  various  ways ;  ^  they  are  always  grouped  as 
boys  and  girls  separately,  so  that  differences  and  resem- 
blances among  them  may  become  apparent ;  they  have 
also,  as  far  as  possible,  been  arranged  in  age-groups, 
to  show  the  progress  that  occurs  during  school  life. 
Thus  a  basis  of  facts  has  been  provided  for  the  sci- 
entific study  of  the  mental  and  physical  conditions  of 
childhood.^ 

In  observing  the  child,  you  must  know  what  to  look 
at  and  what  to  look  for ;  after  a  time  you  will  learn, 
from  what  you  see,  to  make  correct  inferences  as  to  the 
conditions  and  the  changes  occurring  in  the  brain  of  the 
child  before  you.  Much  help  in  this  work  will  be  de- 
rived from  methodical  procedure  and  description  of  the 
facts  seen.  When  making  your  observations,  do  not 
talk  to  the  child  or  touch  him,  but  let  him  stand  quietly 
as  you  look  at  him  point  by  point.  To  do  this  conven- 
iently it  is  necessary  to  prevent  the  child  from  looking 
at  you,  while  examining  his  head  and  face  :  if  you  hold 

1  "  Report  on  the  Scientific  Study  of  the  Mental  and  Physical  Conditions 
of  Childhood."     The  Macmillan  Company. 

*  For  statistical  analysis  see  References  15,  41. 

E 


50  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

up  a  small  object  in  your  hand,  just  telling  him  to  look 
at  it,  this  fixes  his  eyes,  and  he  does  not  see  you  as  you 
look  at  him. 

Now  proceed  to  examine  his  face  part  by  part.  The 
face  may  be  described  in  three  zones,  —  the  forehead 
above  the  eyebrows,  the  eyelids,  and  the  parts  around 
them, — then  the  lower  part  of  the  face,  including  the 
cheek-bones  and  the  nostrils,  with  the  region  around  the 
mouth, — each  area  presents  points  for  observation. 

The  child's  forehead  should  be  generally  smooth  and 
placid,  corresponding  to  quiet  brain  action,  and  a  men- 
tal status  neither  wholly  uncontrolled  nor  too  much 
stimulated.  There  are  two  pairs  of  muscles  in  the  fore- 
head, the  one  placed  vertically  under  the  skin  so  that 
by  their  contraction  they  make  horizontal  creases,  the 
other  is  placed  horizontally  between  the  eyebrows, 
drawing  them  together  in  action.^ 

The  frontal  muscles  acting,  cause  frowning,  with 
horizontal  furrows  of  the  forehead  ;  this  may  accompany 
a  discontented  mental  state  or  an  unoccupied  attitude. 
The  sign  is  often  repeated  as  a  habit.  It  is  much  more 
frequently  seen  in  boys  than  in  girls,  and  is  most  com- 
mon in  those  with  any  degree  of  brain  defect. 

The  corrugator  muscles  knit  the  eyebrows,  drawing 
them  together,  thus  producing  vertical  furrows.  This 
may  be  seen  under  mental  stress,  or  in  a  class  engaged 
in  mental  arithmetic.     It  may  also  occur  together  with 

*  Drawing  of  muscles  of  face.     See  "  Study  of  Children,"  p.  21. 


THE   MOUTH  — SMILING  5 1 

horizontal  frowning,  causing  a  bad  scowling  expression 
in  the  face. 

The  orbiculares  oculi  form  a  pair  of  circular  mus- 
cles surrounding  the  eyelids  and  closing  them  ;  they 
also  give  good  tone  to  the  lower  lids  in  a  lively  child, 
and  shapeliness,  while  in  smiling  they  make  folds  in  the 
skin.  In  fatigue,  and  the  debiUty  accompanying  head- 
aches, these  muscles  lose  their  tone,  the  face  looks 
full  and  baggy  about  the  eyes,  the  muscle  is  lax,  and 
the  shapeliness  of  the  lower  lid  is  lost.^ 

The  mouth.  —  In  the  lower  part  of  the  face  the 
mouth  and  the  parts  around  it  are  the  principal  seat  of 
expression.  The  mouth,  when  quiet,  should  be  closed, 
breath  being  drawn  in  through  the  nose ;  but  some 
children  cannot  breathe  without  opening  the  mouth. 
This  is  a  matter  calling  for  medical  treatment.  The  line 
of  the  mouth  is  naturally  nearly  straight,  but  the  angles 
may  be  drawn  upwards  or  downwards. 

Grinning  and  over-smiling  consists  in  an  upward  and 
outward  movement  of  the  corners  of  the  mouth,  widen- 
ing the  opening  and  making  creases  in  the  face  running 
from  the  nostrils  to  the  angles  of  the  mouth.  Similar 
action  occurs  in  healthy  laughter,  which  spreads  to  the 
eyelids.  In  conditions  of  pain  the  angles  of  the  mouth 
are  drawn  down  ;  so  also  at  the  commencement  of  cry- 
ing and  other  spreading  movements.  In  the  state  of 
passion  the  canine  tooth  on  one  side  may  be  uncovered. 

^  Reference  28. 


52  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE   CHILD 

Expression  in  the  face  as  a  whole  is  one  of  the  best 
signs  of  the  mental  status  of  the  child.  A  bright, 
lively,  changeful  expression  indicates  spontaneity,  and 
is  a  hopeful  sign  of  mental  aptitude,  while  a  spreading 
smile  about  the  mouth  to  the  eyelids  shows  brain  ac- 
tivity, and  may  indicate  mental  action  which  the  pupil 
cannot  express  in  words. 

The  absence  of  facial  expression  is  a  marked  sign  of 
a  dull  brain  without  spontaneous  activity ;  this  may  be 
seen  in  fatigue,  or  day  by  day  in  an  exhausted  child.^ 
The  face  may  bear  a  good  general  expression,  and  in 
addition  show  any  of  the  signs  described;  conversely, 
these  signs  may  be  seen  in  a  face  devoid  of  general 
expression.^ 

In  looking  at  the  face  you  see  the  eyes ;  i.e.  the  eye- 
balls —  the  muscles  that  move  them  have  special  nerves 
coming  direct  from  the  brain,  apart  from  the  nerves 
to  the  muscles  of  the  face ;  eye-movements  should 
therefore  be  observed  apart  from  action  in  the  face, 
and  are  very  interesting  as  signs  of  brain  action. 

Eye-movements  may  show  much  spontaneity,  turning 
every  way,  though  most  frequently  in  a  horizontal  di- 
rection, leading  to  but  vague  impressions  at  sight, 
though  many  objects  may  be  seen.  Some  children 
look  about,  and  at  the  words  in  the  book,  by  moving  the 
head  only,  not  turning  the  eyes  at  all.  Try  how  the 
child  follows  your   finger  as  you  move  it,  whether  by 

1  See  "  Study  of  Children,"  Case  21.  2  Reference  4. 


OBSERVING  A  CHILD  53 

moving  his  eyes  or  his  head ;  test  also  his  power  to  fix 
the  eyes  well  on  what  he  is  told  to  look  at.  Irregular 
eye  movements  interfere  with  learning  geometry.  (See 
Chapter  IX.,  p.  180.) 

The  hand  in  its  attitudes,  the  movements  of  its  parts, 
and  its  ability  to  perform  many  actions  is  almost  as 
good  an  index  of  the  brain  as  the  face.^  In  order  that 
you  may  observe  the  effects  of  the  action  of  the  brain 
on  the  hand  it  must  be  free  to  move  within  your  view  ; 
neither  hidden  behind  the  child's  back,  nor  resting  on 
the  table,  but  held  out  and  balanced  as  the  muscles 
move  it  under  the  control  of  the  brain. 

Let  the  child  stand ;  tell  him  to  hold  out  his  hands 
in  front  with  the  palms  down,  and  show  him  the  action 
momentarily.  In  a  well-trained  active  child  response 
follows ;  the  arms  are  raised  to  the  level  of  the  shoul- 
ders and  horizontal,  straight  at  the  elbow,  the  arms 
being  parallel  to  one  another,  and  the  distance  of  the 
chest  apart.  The  hands  and  fingers  should  balance 
straight  at  the  wrists  and  knuckles ;  all  parts  with  the 
fingers  and  the  thumb  in  the  same  plane,  so  that  a  card 
placed  on  the  back  of  the  hand  is  touched  by  each 
digit.  This  shows  a  normal  or  good  balance  among 
the  brain  centres,  well  coordinated  by  training.  As 
the  balance  depends  upon  a  uniform  action  of  certain 
brain  centres,  you  should  not  make  the  child  hold  out 
his  hand  thus  for  more   than  half   a  minute  at  most; 

1  References  3,  9,  16. 


54  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

the  attitude  is  tiring,  like  any  persistent  uniform 
mental  effort. 

The  weak  hand  balance  shows  a  marked  difference 
from  the  straight  attitude ;  this  may  occur  in  different 
degrees.  The  wrist  droops,  the  bones  of  the  palm  of 
the  hand  are  somewhat  folded  together,  while  the 
thumb  drops  and  all  the  fingers  are  slightly  bent.  All 
this  shows  less  action  in  the  muscles,  and  less  force 
produced  in  the  brain  centres  which  make  them  act. 
If  you  get  the  child  to  look  at  your  straight  balanced 
hand  and  imitate  it,  you  control  his  brain  attitude  to 
be  more  like  yours ;  as  he  sees  your  hand,  his  brain 
centres  begin  to  act  and  balance  as  yours  do,  and  the 
hand  straightens  up.  Thus  you  influence  the  brain 
of  the  child  through  his  eyes  by  sight  of  your  hand, 
controlling  his  brain  centres  :  all  this  you  may  observe 
as  the  hand  straightens  in  imitation  of  your  action. 

If  you  gently  raise  the  arm  of  a  child  in  sleep,  the 
hand  falls  into  the  weak  or  drooping  attitude,  which 
is  characteristic  of  a  brain  state  not  sending  out  force. 
The  weak  hand  balance  is  seen  in  those  who  are  list- 
less, careless,  or  tired ;  it  is  common  to  observe  the 
posture  more  marked  on  the  left  side ;  and  also  to  find 
that  a  child,  when  directed  to  hold  out  his  hand,  keeps 
the  left  at  a  lower  level  than  the  right,  whereas  both 
should  be  at  the  same  level. 

The  nervous  hand  balance  is  a  modification  of  the 
posture  last  described,  and  Hke  it  may  be  seen  in  vary- 


BALANCE  OF  HAND  55 

ing  degree.  The  wrist  droops,  the  palm  is  folded  or 
contracted  together  and  looks  narrow,  arched  on  the 
top  and  hollow  on  the  under  surface;  the  thumb  is 
bent  back  and  each  finger  is  bent  back  at  the  knuckle- 
joint.  This  attitude,  like  the  weak  hand,  is  often  more 
marked  on  the  left  side.  You  will  not  see  this  in  the 
restful  conditions  of  sleep ;  it  indicates  some  degree  of 
weakness,  together  with  some  overaction  or  excitability 
of  the  brain  centres. 

The  nervous  hand  balance  is  common  among  nervous 
children  and  adults ;  those  who  sleep  badly,  suffer  from 
headaches,  often  with  capricious  or  voracious  appe- 
tites and  disturbance  of  digestion,  and  vague  debility 
without  disease.^  This  sign  does  not  indicate  a  state 
of  brain  inactivity  like  the  "  weak  hand  "  ;  rather  weak- 
ness with  excitability,  such  as  characterises  the  condi- 
tion of  St  Vitus's  dance ;  it  is  not  usually  accompanied 
by  mental  dulness  of  brain. 

The  fingers  can  move  separately,  each  act  being  due 
to  the  activity  in  a  brain  centre  ;  thus  the  parts  of  the 
hand  move  separately,  indicating  brain  action  in  writ- 
ing, or  express  thoughts  in  drawing,  or  produce  music 
on  the  instrument ;  in  each  case  the  centres  for  finger 
movements  are  guided  by  sight.  Finger  movements 
indicate  the  brain  state. 

Finger  twitches.  —  When  the  hand  is  held  out  for 
you  to  look  at,  if  the  fingers  touch  one  another  they 

1  Reference  32. 


56  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

give  mutual  support,  and  you  will  probably  see  no 
movement ;  therefore  take  care  to  see  the  fingers  sepa- 
rated or  spread  out,  when  they  ought  to  be  straight  and 
steady. 

You  may,  however,  see  twitches  of  one  or  more 
fingers;  these  may  be  either  up  and  down  (flexor- 
extensor)  or  lateral, —  the  latter  are  more  common  in 
nervous  mental  conditions.  Finger  twitches  often  ac- 
company the  "nervous  hand"  posture  in  weak  con- 
ditions. 

The  spine  is  a  column  composed  of  many  small 
bones,  and  is  capable  of  being  bent  in  various  direc- 
tions ;  postures  of  the  spine  should  be  noted.^  If  a 
child  when  at  his  desk  constantly  bends  to  one  side, 
making  one  shoulder  higher  than  the  other,  some 
lateral  curvature  of  the  spine  is  likely  to  follow  —  stoop- 
ing and  bending  the  back  in  reading  or  writing  may 
be  due  to  short  sight,  requiring  the  use  of  spectacles. 
As  the  child  stands,  the  shoulders  should  be  at  an  equal 
height,  with  the  head  erect ;  when  the  hands  are  held 
out  quietly  in  front,  there  is  no  alteration  in  the  outline 
and  curves  of  the  back  resulting  from  the  action  if  the 
child  is  strong. 

Lordosis.  —  When  the  hands  are  held  out,  the  action 
may  result  in  arching  forward  of  the  lower  part  of  the 
spine  at  the  loins ;  while  the  upper  part  between  the 
shoulders  is  thrown  back.     This  is  best  seen  in  a  profile 

1  See  Drawing,  "  Study  of  Children,"  p.  23. 


NERVE   SIGNS  57 

view  of  the  child,  and  is  due  to  weakness  of  the  muscles 
of  the  back,  and  commonly  accompanies  a  state  of 
debility.  An  energetic  child  will  often  shoot  forward 
his  hands,  especially  if  the  fists  are  closed,  arching  the 
back  at  the  same  time ;  the  energy  of  such  action 
shows  the  absence  of  weakness,  while  the  exercise  can 
be  more  quietly  repeated  without  movement  of  the  spine. 

Other  nerve  signs  I  have  described  elsewhere,^  only 
repeating  here  those  that  are  most  obvious  and  easily 
observed,  specially  selecting  such  as  should  attract 
your  attention  as  being  points  which  may  guide  class 
training,  and  adapt  it  to  promote  mental  abilities  and 
remove  the  brain  disabilities  indicated  by  these  sub- 
normal nerve  signs.  If  the  child  does  not  stand 
straight  and  move  the  eyes  well,  these  form  matters 
for  attention  in  the  exercises  used.  My  chief  purpose 
is  that  your  method  in  training  should  be  guided  by 
your  own  observations  of  the  pupils  in  the  class.  (See 
Chapter  VII.,  examples.) 

A  few  remarks  may  be  useful  as  to  the  relations 
between  the  general  characters  of  brain  action  and  the 
individual  nerve  signs,  which  have  not  always  the  same 
significance,  just  as  the  meaning  of  words  varies  ac- 
cording to  the  connections  in  which  they  are  employed. 
Thus  —  '*frontals  overacting"  is  usually  a  sign  of 
spontaneous  action  in  the  nerve  centre  producing  it. 
(i)   In   as   far   as   you  cannot  control  the  movement, 

1  See  Author's  "  Study  of  Children." 


58  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

this  sign  also  shows  want  of  impressionability,  (2)  and 
incapacity  for  quiet  coordinated  action.  (8)  It  may 
appear  as  part  of  a  spreading  area  of  action  in  the 
face,  (9)  in  stammering  or  in  full  laughter. 

"Corrugation"  most  often  belongs  to  the  class  of 
spreading  action  (9),  as  indicating  a  (useless)  overflow 
of  nerve  energy  accompanying  some  mental  act ;  but 
it  may  also  occur  apparently  as  a  spontaneous  action  (i). 

"Smiling,"  after  a  pause  occupied  in  thinking,  is 
sometimes  the  first  indication  that  a  reply  has  been 
arranged  in  the  brain.  Grinning,  as  a  uniform  re- 
peated spontaneous  movement,  in  the  absence  of  con- 
trollability or  the  signs  of  compound  cerebration,  shows 
marked  dulness  of  brain  or  deficiency.^ 

"  Eye-movements  "  may  show  spontaneity,  and  yet  be 
controllable  through  sight  or  by  the  word  of  direction ; 
they  may  produce  impressions  on  the  brain  by  muscle 
sense,  as  those  corresponding  to  number,  dimension,  or 
size.     (See  Chapters  VII.,  p.  145  ;  IX.,  pp.  180,  185.) 

Nerve  signs  are  often  associated  with  one  another 
in  the  same  child  and  form  points  for  describing  his 
brain  status.  Their  individual  value  has  to  some 
extent  been  determined  by  working  out  their  co-rela- 
tion with  mental  dulness  and  other  conditions  as  re- 
corded in  the  notes  of  the  cases.     Thus  :  ^  — 


1  References  17,  20,  21,  22. 

*  See  "  Report  on  Scientific  Study  on  Children,"  The  Macmillan  Com- 
pany, 1895,  pp.  72  and  104. 


CO-RELATIONS  OF  NERVE  SIGNS  59 

Of  715  boys  504  girls  with  the  "weak  hand  balance," 
40  per  cent  boys,  35.3  per  cent  girls,  were  reported 
as  dull  or  backward. 

Of  550  boys  516  girls  with  the  "nervous  hand  bal- 
ance" 34.3  per  cent  boys,  32.9  per  cent  girls,  were 
reported  as  dull  or  backward. 

Of  1322  boys  294  girls,  with  "frontals  overacting,"  41.4 
per  cent  boys,  and  46.2  per  cent  girls,  were  reported 
as  dull  or  backward. 

It  is  thus  seen  that  these  sub-normal  nerve  signs  are 
associated  with  brain  conditions  causing  mental  dul- 
ness,  and  that,  consequently,  training  ought  to  be  di- 
rected to  prevent  or  remove  such  in  detail.  In  this 
the  class  teacher  will  be  guided  by  observation.  (See 
mistakes  in  arithmetic.     Chapter  IX.,  p.  185.) 

Further :  these  nerve  signs,  and  the  signs  of  the 
general  characters  of  brain  action  in  a  child  afford  a 
basis  for  the  study  of  physiological  psychology ;  we 
want  to  know  the  process  going  on  in  his  brain  which 
corresponds  to  mental  acts  and  expression,  so  that 
observation  may  guide  us  in  tracing  out  what  occurs 
when  using  methods  of  teaching ;  and  in  seeing,  where 
difficulties  arise,  how  training  may  be  employed  to 
remove  them  and  promote  orderly  action  in  thinking 
and  learning.     (See  Chapter  VII.) 

The  constitution  or  make  of  the  child,  as  well  as 
his  healthiness,  depend  largely  upon  his  development. 


6o  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

Physiognomy,  as  well  as  anthropometry,  or  measure- 
ment of  the  parts  of  the  body  and  their  comparison, 
tell  us  much  as  to  the  development  of  the  child,  whether 
normal  or  otherwise.  When  the  body  is  well  developed 
there  is  a  great  probability  of  a  healthy  active  brain 
accompanying;  the  two  conditions  are  corelated,  but 
their  coexistence  in  an  individual  child  is  not  to  be 
assumed  without  observation  of  the  signs  of  brain  ac- 
tion, normal  in  kind,  according  to  the  age  of  the  child. 
Physiognomy  depends  upon  the  proportions  which 
produce  the  form  of  the  individual  features,  and  their 
relations  in  growth ;  a  well-made  body  with  well-pro- 
portioned head  and  features,  generally  has  a  well- 
balanced  nerve  system  and  is  well  nourished  and 
healthy.^ 

The  head  of  the  infant  has  been  sufficiently  described 
in  Chapter  II.  At  seven  years  of  age  the  circumfer- 
ence should  have  grown  to  20  or  21  inches,  while 
the  average  weight  of  brain  has  reached  to  over  40 
ounces ;  the  weight  of  the  adult  brain  being  50  ounces 
in  males  and  45  ounces  in  females. 

A  head  of  19  inches  in  circumference  at  seven 
years  is  small ;  the  volume  or  content  of  the  head  is 
a  matter  of  great  importance.  Most  forms  of  ill- 
shapen  heads,  as  well  as  other  defects  in  develop- 
ment, are  more  frequent  in  boys,  but  the  small  head 
is  an  exception  as  being   far   more   common  in  girls, 

^  Reference  42. 


OBSERVING  THE  FACE  6 1 

who  often  tend  to  be  delicate,  though  of  average  men- 
tal ability.  The  forehead  should  neither  bulge  forward 
nor  recede  from  the  vertical  plane,  the  bones  should 
be  smooth  without  any  ridging  or  lumpiness ;  among 
subnormal  conditions,  the  forehead  may  be  contracted 
and  shallow ;  each  defect  has  a  significance.  The 
head  is  the  principal  indication  of  a  well-developed 
child;  other  physiognomical  signs  vary  in  value  as 
indications  of  the  probable  brain  status.  Further 
points  for  observation  I  quote  from  my  article  in 
School  World?- 

The  features  should  be  well  moulded  individually 
and  proportioned  to  one  another ;  in  place  of  this 
they  may  be  coarse,  or,  while  no  one  feature  is  ill- 
formed  in  its  parts,  they  may  be  disproportioned,  the 
nose  small,  but  the  face  large  and  rounded.  The 
parts  of  each  feature  and  their  proportions  should  be 
observed ;  in  particular  the  absence  of  any  normal 
part  of  a  feature  should  be  noted  —  as  is  so  common 
in  the  ears,  where  the  rim  is  often  deficient.^ 

Looking  at  the  face,  observe  each  feature  separately. 
Compare  the  two  sides,  looking  for  symmetry  of  devel- 
opment. Carry  your  eyes  to  each  ear  in  turn ;  they 
should  be  of  similar  size  and  form,  with  the  margin 
slightly  curved  over,  and  the  pleat  of  the  ear  (antihelix) 
projecting  in  front  of  the  rim  well  developed,  causing 
the  ear  to  lie  flat  against  the  head  in  its  proper  posi- 

1  School  Worlds  March,  1899.  2  Reference  23. 


62  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

tion.  The  pleat  of  the  ear  may  be  absent,  or  the  rim 
may  be  imperfectly  developed,  the  whole  ear  being 
large  and  outstanding  ;  concave  in  form  and  red  or 
bluish.  This  is  common  among  boys,  much  less  fre- 
quent in  girls;  the  defect  is  not  associated  with  dull 
hearing. 

The  nose  is  seldom  quite  symmetrical;  its  bony 
bridge  has  no  forward  growth  in  infancy,  but  develops 
out  later,  say  by  seven  years;  it  may  remain  broad, 
flat,  and  thick  in  growth,  with  tipping  of  the  end  of 
the  nose  upwards,  the  nostrils  perhaps  being  small. 
Such  children  are  apt  to  be  "mouth  breathers,"  the 
nasal  passages  and  the  mouth  may  both  be  small; 
this  may  lead  to  acquired  causes  of  deafness. 

The  mouth  in  quiescence  should  be  of  good  size  — 
it  is  seldom  too  large ;  the  common  reference  to  a 
large  mouth  is  due  to  the  frequency  of  grinning,  which 
widens  the  mouth  in  action,  accompanying  brain 
deficiency.  A  small  mouth,  though  the  feature  may 
be  admired  as  artistic,  is  a  subnormal  condition  fre- 
quently associated  with  a  narrow  palate  and  with 
small  eye-openings. 

The  eye-openings  (palpebral  fissures).  —  The  open- 
ings between  the  lids — where  the  eyeballs  are  seen 
—  should  be  sufficiently  large  in  proportion  to  the 
other  features,  and  the  axis  drawn  from  the  inner  to 
the  outer  angle  should  be  horizontal.  These  open- 
ings may  be  narrow  or  too  small,  the  transverse  axis 


CONDITIONS  OF  DEVELOPMENT  63 

may  slope  downwards,  as  in  Polynesians  and  other 
tribes.  Small  eye-openings,  accompanied  by  a  small 
mouth,  produce  a  blank,  featureless  physiognomy. 

The  palate.  —  If  you  look  at  the  roof  of  the  mouth 
you  see  the  bony  palate ;  its  size  and  form  are  impor- 
tant indications  of  the  developmental  constitution  of 
the  individual,  second  in  importance  only  to  the  head 
or  cranium.  There  should  be  sufficient  width  or  space 
between  the  teeth,  rounded  in  front,  while  in  the  ver- 
tical direction  (vertical  plane)  it  is  a  bowed  rather 
than  a  Gothic  arch.  The  palate  may  be  narrow,  or 
contracted  laterally,  and  more  or  less  sharply  pointed 
anteriorly,  it  may  also  be  highly  arched  or  vaulted  in 
the  vertical  plane ;  each  of  these  deviations  in  form 
is  subnormal.  If  the  palate  is  narrow,  the  teeth  are 
usually  crowded  in  front :  all  forms  of  defect  in  the 
form  of  the  palate  (except  when  fissured  or  cleft)  are 
consistent  with  fair  speech. 

The  growth  of  the  child  may  be  measured  by  his 
height,  and  compared  with  the  normal  for  the  age  as 
shown  in  Standard  Tables,^  the  weight  of  the  body 
may  usefully  be  added  to  the  description.  There 
appears  to  be  a  larger  proportion  of  small  girls  than 
boys ;  the  same  rule  applies  to  children  under  weight. 

Having  described  points  for  your  observation  of  the 
child  at  school  age,  it  remains  that  I  should  indicate 
their  bearing  on  mental  and  physical  hygiene  and  on 

iSee  "  Study  of  Children,"  p.  31. 


64  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

your  care  and  training.  We  have  seen  that  spontaneity 
of  brain  action  is  the  great  characteristic  of  early  days ; 
this  affords  a  basis  for  cultivating  coordinated  action 
under  control,  thus  preparing  the  young  brain  for  the 
work  of  childhood  and  the  responsibilities  of  ado- 
lescence. The  child  in  school  becomes  an  object 
for  observation  to  the  student;  while  the  teacher  has 
the  labour  of  training  the  general  characters  of  brain 
action,  adapting  his  methods  of  instruction  to  the 
pupil's  mental  capacities  as  they  are  evolved  and 
cultivated. 

Healthiness  is  necessary  to  spontaneity  and  mental 
brightness;  it  must  be  remembered  throughout  the 
school  life  that  the  brain  needs  to  be  nourished  during 
its  rapid  growth  and  development,  as  well  as  later, 
when  evolving  further  faculties  and  retaining  many 
impressions. 

Impressionability  is  increased  by  practice ;  things 
seen  and  sounds  heard,  which  do  not  at  first  attract 
the  attention  and  produce  any  apparent  impression, 
may  do  so  later  on  if  persistently  followed  up.  Dr. 
G.  Shuttleworth  ^  says :  "  A  very  impassive,  imbecile 
child  is  so  inert  as  not  to  put  up  its  hands  to  protect  its 
face  against  a  bean-bag  thrown  at  it  by  the  teacher ; 
gradually,  however,  the  instinct  of  self-preservation 
asserts  itself  so  far  as  to  ward  off  the  missile." 

1  "  Mentally-Deficient  Children,"  G.  E.  Shuttleworth.  Lewis  and  Co., 
London. 


EARLY   CONTROL  OF  CHILD  6$ 

Control  through  the  senses  is  cultivated  by  practice, 
we  can  make  impressions  on  the  child's  brain  by  caus- 
ing him  to  see,  to  hear,  and  to  feel.  In  training,  stage 
by  stage,  we  should  plan  our  methods  so  that  the  early 
impressions  made  in  the  brain  are  such  as  will  be 
useful  at  more  advanced  stages  ;  this  is  true  economy, 
and  will  make  later  teaching  easier.  It  seems  to  me 
that,  as  far  as  possible,  early  impressions  should  be 
produced  without  the  use  of  words,  in  an  arranged 
order  on  a  fixed  plan,  which  can  be  repeated  afterwards  ; 
these  impressions  can  be  revived  and  connected  with 
names,  when  terms  have  been  taught.  If  you  wish  to 
impress  the  colours  on  a  child,  show  them  one  at  a 
time  with  a  slight  interval  between  each ;  colour  with 
no  particular  form  is  best  —  torn  pieces  of  paper  of 
the  true  colour,  not  painted  toys.  The  pupil  can 
afterwards  learn  to  pronounce  the  names,  "  red,"  "  blue," 
"yellow,"  as  he  looks  at  your  face ;  then  couple  sight 
with  the  term  ;  thus  you  make  impressions  by  sight, 
then  give  words,  and  proceed  stage  by  stage  without 
a  chance  for  confusion  to  occur.  As  a  means  towards 
control  through  the  senses,  the  sense  organs  them- 
selves need  healthy  exercise;  town  children  do  not 
get  the  same  opportunities  as  those  in  the  country  for 
seeing  distant  objects,  still  they  may  be  made  to  look 
up  a  straight  street,  or  at  the  clouds,  the  setting  sun, 
the  moon,  and  the  stars.  There  is  a  muscular  appa- 
ratus in   the   eyeball  which   is   exercised  by  vision  at 


66  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

varying  distances ;  it  contracts  on  looking  at  near 
objects  and  relaxes  for  distance,  when  the  pupil  of 
the  eye  expands  also.  Soldiers  are  thus  trained  to 
estimate  distance  at  sight.  Hearing  may  be  trained 
in  listening  for  distant  sounds  and  the  notes  of  the 
birds,  while  musical  sounds  and  singing  may  help. 

Impressions  by  muscle  sense  call  for  careful  con- 
sideration. While  much  attention  is  given  in  early 
school  days  to  training  through  the  eye  and  the  ear, 
it  seems  that  too  little  care  is  bestowed  on  the  value 
of  training  the  brain  by  impressions  produced  on  it 
through  the  muscles.  This  is  totally  different  from 
exercising  the  muscles  for  the  purpose  of  making 
them  grow  big  and  strong.  When,  in  the  drilling 
class,  the  child  performs  exercises  with  the  fists  closed, 
raising  the  arms  over  his  head,  or  again,  touches  his 
knees,  and  then  quietly  straightens  his  back,  the  mus- 
cles themselves  are  brought  strongly  into  action,  and 
their  strength  is  increased  by  such  exercises.  Drilling 
the  muscles  promotes  their  healthy  growth,  and  to 
some  extent  improves  the  brain ;  it  makes  the  bones 
grow,  strengthens  the  joints,  expands  the  chest,  leads 
to  expansion  of  the  lungs  and  fuller  breathing  power, 
while  strengthening  the  heart.  Physical  exercises  give 
a  good  carriage  and  gait  to  the  children,  with  some 
grace  in  movement ;  the  muscular  activity  promotes 
growth  of  body  in  girls  and  boys,  if  the  body  is 
healthy. 


MUSCLE  SENSE  TRAINED  67 

Apart  from  the  physical  exercises  adapted  to  cause 
growth  in  the  body,  the  muscles  may  be  used  like  the 
sense  organs,  as  the  means  of  producing  impressions 
on  the  brain  which  will  be  of  much  use  subsequently 
in  training  mental  processes.  The  strain  on  a  muscle 
is  felt;  place  a  weight  in  the  hand,  it  makes  a  pull 
upon  the  muscles  of  the  arm  which  is  felt  by  the  child. 
Place  in  his  hand  in  succession  metal  weights  of  one 
ounce,  two,  four,  eight  ounces,  the  strain  produced  by 
each  is  proportionate  to  the  weights.  If  i  +  i  +  i  4-  i 
ounces  are  added  to  his  hand,  the  addition  of  weight 
is  felt.  When  it  is  the  degree  of  muscle  strain  you 
want  to  use  as  a  means  of  brain  impression,  see  that 
the  hand  is  held  out  free  from  the  desk;  it  may  be 
moved  up  and  down  with  the  fingers  open,  so  that 
the  size  shall  not  be  felt  at  the  same  time  by  the 
fingers  and  so  make  a  second  kind  of  impression.  In 
this  way  the  child  may  be  made  to  feel  the  addition 
of  weights  or  impressions  which  are  proportional,  be- 
fore he  has  any  words  to  use  for  addition  or  com- 
parison. If  you  cause  the  child  to  make  one  movement 
of  his  hand  and  drop  it,  then  ten  similar  movements 
regularly  in  succession,  the  impression  upon  the  brain 
centres  is  greater  in  the  latter  case.  Control  through 
the  senses  should  begin  in  the  first  year;  in  com- 
mencing, such  control  should  be  very  temporary,  as 
the  attention  is  momentarily  attracted;  still,  in  the 
"play"  of  infancy  some  impressions  are  produced  on 


6S  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

the  brain,  even  if  not  retained.  So  it  is  in  later  evo- 
lution, impressions  are  produced,  but  may  be  transient ; 
training  is  effected,  but  its  outcome  and  benefits  are 
not  seen  till  a  later  stage. 

Thus  evolution  comes  about  stage  by  stage ;  spon- 
taneity at  birth  is  soon  accompanied  by  some  impres- 
sionability, and  a  little  later  by  control  in  temporary 
inhibition  of  movement,  which  soon  leads  on  to  action 
coordinated  through  the  senses,  and  this,  when  retained, 
brings  the  child  a  long  way  towards  mental  develop- 
ment. 

Compound  brain  action  implies  the  establishment  of 
nerve  paths  between  various  brain  centres.  The  physi- 
ological law  appears  to  be  that  impressions  produced 
in  the  brain  at  one  and  the  same  time,  or  in  immediate 
succession  —  so  that  the  two  or  more  brain  centres 
are  coactive  —  tend  to  become  connected  by  ner\^e 
paths,  or  are  so  far  united  as  to  be  easily  brought 
into  reactivity  in  the  same  order  as  that  in  which  they 
were  produced.  Modes  of  movement  imitated  in  re- 
peated exercises  become  more  exact  with  practice,  till 
they  can  be  reproduced  alone  without  guidance  when 
once  started  ;  the  nerve  centres  producing  the  move- 
ment have  grown  together.  Words  heard  in  a  certain 
order  —  the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  the  numerals,  or 
a  verse  of  poetry,  are  retained  as  impressions  on  the 
brain  and  reproduced  in  order.  Established  compound 
brain  action  gives  retentiveness,  not  only  for  a  word 


FORMATION   OF  NERVE   PATHS  69 

or  an  act ;  impressions  retained  among  the  nerve 
centres  establish  arrangements  for  series  of  move- 
ments and  sequences  of  acts.  Thus  your  training, 
and  all  that  the  child  sees  and  hears,  produce  impres- 
sions in  his  brain  which  may  come  into  action  later 
on ;  habits  are  formed,  trains  of  thought  are  implanted, 
and  the  child  growing  up  begins  to  do  and  think  as 
he  has  been  trained  and  taught. 

Coordinated  action  controlled  in  each  movement  or 
act  is  brought  about  through  the  senses ;  if  uniformly 
repeated,  this  tends  to  establish  a  mode  of  action  in 
the  brain.  Hence  the  importance  of  exactness  in  all 
you  do  in  training  the  child,  and  the  advisability  of 
forming  an  idea  of  what  you  want  to  accomplish. 
Control  of  the  brain  centres  inhibits  their  spontaneous 
action,  causing  them  to  act  in  certain  new  relations 
of  time  or  degree  —  further;  as  I  have  said,  there  is 
evidence  that  nerve  paths  from  centre  to  centre  are 
formed  the  while.  Producing  coordinated  action  is  a 
delicate  process  in  brain  culture ;  it  should  not  be  long 
continued  at  one  time  without  allowing  intervals  for 
the  return  of  some  healthy  spontaneity.  (See  further, 
Chapter  V.,  p.  105.) 

Spreading  area  of  brain  action  seen  in  facial  ex- 
pression often  accompanies  mental  action.  Knitting 
the  eyebrows  may  indicate  mental  stress  or  confusion  ; 
frowning  (frontals  overacting)  as  a  uniformly  repeated 
action  when  the  child  is  spoken  to,  or  occurring  spon- 


JO  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

taneously,  may  indicate  weariness,  or  either  too  much 
or  too  little  stimulation  of  the  brain.  In  fatigue  and 
weariness,  spreading  movement  is  seen  in  fidgetiness, 
and  a  tendency  to  chatter ;  which  may  sometimes  be 
met  by  a  change  of  occupation.^  Laughter  has  been 
described  as  a  spreading  area  of  movement;  I  think 
it  may  be  allowed  and  employed  usefully  to  remove 
brain  impressions  when  a  new  line  of  action  is  wanted. 
After  making  an  absurd  mistake,  due  to  mental  con- 
fusion, if  the  pupil  will  laugh  with  you  —  not  you  at 
him  —  his  face  may  grow  cheerful  as  he  tries  again. 
Spreading  movement  in  the  young  child  is  seen  in 
his  spontaneity  and  in  the  signs  of  happiness.^ 

Response  and  expression  it  is  always  important  to 
observe.  Response  may  be  similar  to  the  stimulus, 
as  in  imitation  of  your  movements,  or  repetition  of 
your  words ;  action  similar  to  yours,  as  expressed, 
naturally  tends  to  occur  in  the  brain  of  the  pupil,  if 
it  does  not  always  take  place ;  that  is  to  say,  the  same 
centres  in  the  child's  brain  are  stimulated  as  those 
active  in  your  head  in  giving  the  direction.  Higher 
forms  of  response  in  mental  action  are  due  to  inter- 
action of  the  primary  impression,  or  direction,  with 
many  previous  brain  impressions  implanted  by  teach- 
ing.    You  ask   where   he   has   been    during   the   holi- 

1  See  Muscular  Movements  in  Man,  Journal  of  Mental  Science^  1889, 
April,  Paragraph  38. 

2  Physical  expression.     See  Illustrations  49-45. 


TRAINING  AND   BRAIN   HEALTH  71 

days  ?  Impressions  of  what  he  has  seen  revive  to 
activity  and  are  expressed  in  his  reponse.  As  regards 
verbal  response  this  must  necessarily  be  limited  by 
the  vocabulary  acquired,  and  the  correct  association  of 
impressions  with  the  terms  of  expression.  Response 
in  facial  expression  is  most  likely  to  be  true,  as  when 
the  child  looks  happy  and  says  he  knows  his  lesson, 
though  he  cannot  repeat  it.  I  once  had  to  see  a 
boy  who  went  to  school,  where  he  looked  distressed, 
and  gave  a  message  that  he  was  to  return  home  as 
his  baby  brother  was  dead.  This  was  totally  without 
foundation,  he  had  no  brother.  This  child  often  had 
illusions  and  saw  what  existed  only  in  his  brain;  he 
soon  after  became  subject  to  epileptic  fits. 

Response  may  be  delayed  with  too  long  an  interval 
between  the  question  and  the  answer ;  sometimes,  how- 
ever, a  question  is  answered  several  minutes  after  the 
question;  showing  that  processes  of  thought  have 
occurred  in  the  interval. 

Training  the  general  characters  of  brain  action  is 
a  first  step  in  mental  hygiene  towards  developing  the 
faculties  in  the  child's  brain  which  are  to  be  acted  on 
by  your  teaching :  at  the  same  time  evolution  of 
healthy  action  is  encouraged  and  employed  which  ren- 
ders the  brain  less  liable  to  nerve  storms  in  the  form  of 
emotion,  nervousness,  headaches,  and  other  distressing 
conditions.^     There  is  a  useless  waste  of  brain  power 

1  Reference  27. 


72  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

in  the  child  when  endeavours  are  made  to  correct  and 
arrange  thoughts  that  have  only  been  partially  formed 
in  the  brain ;  still,  this  seems  often  to  be  attempted  too 
early  by  the  employment  of  verbal  instruction,  and  neg- 
lecting to  train  by  impressions  through  the  senses  and 
by  muscle  sense.  All  fundamental  impressions,  such  as 
colours,  numbers,  proportion,  size,  and  notions  of  time 
and  weight,  need  to  be  produced  by  impressions 
on  the  brain  before  comparisons  can  properly  be  under- 
stood or  expressed. 

Spontaneity  should  be  cultivated,  as  well  as  impres- 
sionability and  the  control  of  brain  action.  Control 
and  attempts  to  produce  coordinated  action  must  be 
arranged  on  a  fixed  plan,  that  the  present  training  may 
prepare  for  advancement,  and  provide  those  impressions 
in  the  brain  which  will  be  employed  in  teaching  later 
on.  The  school  superintendent  who  forms  a  concrete 
idea  of  the  instruction  the  child  should  receive  in  suc- 
ceeding stages  of  education  will  analyse  the  advancing 
stages,  and  take  care  to  arrange  that  the  preliminary 
training  needed  is  afforded  at  the  right  time.  Thus 
training  should  be  adapted  to  afford  future  capacity  for 
learning,  while  teaching  may  be  carefully  arranged  to 
exercise  and  employ  the  capacities  already  acquired. 


CHAPTER     IV 

Observation,  Description,  and  Classification  of 
Children  in  School 

After  giving  some  general  account  of  childhood  and 
the  means  of  study  here  followed,  I  proceed  to  explain 
what  may  be  observed  in  infancy  and  early  childhood 
as  indicative  of  the  general  characters  of  brain  activity ; 
each  such  character  may  in  part  be  indicated  by  points 
seen,  or  nerve  signs ;  particulars  for  observation  of  the 
body,  signs  of  development,  health,  and  growth  have 
also  been  mentioned. 

As  you  watch  children  in  school  you  will  see  many 
kinds  of  movement  which  you  cannot  at  once  readily 
class  as  nerve  signs,  or  under  the  headings  of  the  gen- 
eral character  of  brain  activity  described  in  Chapter  II., 
because  to  some  extent  these  are  arranged  in  relation  to 
the  environment.  As  an  aid  in  rapid  observation,  you 
will  need  terms  of  description  simply  implying  what 
you  see  before  you  at  the  moment,  without  stopping  to 
notice  the  conditions  producing  action. 

When  you  see  the  eyes  move  to  one  corner  of  the 
room,  you  may  notice  the  fact  without  looking  for  a 
cause  indicating  it  as  spontaneous  or  not.  If  the  feet 
are  shifted  and  make  a  noise,  you  can  look  and  see 

73 


74  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

whether  this  is  part  of  a  spreading  area  of  movement 
passing  over  the  face,  the  eyes,  and  also  the  fingers. 
Should  twitching  movements  of  the  fingers  guiding  the 
pen  attract  your  attention,  glancing  at  the  child's  face, 
you  may  see  ripples  about  the  mouth  suggesting 
laughter ;  or,  on  the  other  hand,  twitching  of  the  eye- 
brows, rapid  winking  of  the  eyelids,  and  a  flushed 
face,  expressive  of  some  excitement  or  mental  confusion 
may  be  observed.  In  such  cases  you  may  not  have 
time  to  investigate  further,  and  will  be  obliged  to  act 
without  knowing  the  origin  of  what  you  see.  Shrug- 
ging of  the  shoulders  when  spoken  to,  and  often  re- 
peated, may  be  a  spontaneous  movement,  or  an 
indication  of  mental  status ;  still  it  should  be  noted.  A 
succession  of  movements  in  physical  exercises  may  be 
well  coordinated  in  character  as  seen  ;  but  this  may  be 
either  from  imitation  of  the  other  children  in  the  class, 
or  really  due  to  established  brain  impressions  produced 
by  practice.  Closed  eyelids  may  mean  stopping  to 
think,  or  going  to  sleep. 

Movements  may  be  classed  without  reference  to  their 
cause.  Four  classes  of  movements  will  now  be  de- 
scribed as  apart  from  the  modes  of  brain  action  which 
they  indicate,  and  without  reference  to  their  causation. 
This  will  aid  our  descriptions  of  children  as  we  see 
them.  You  must  be  familiar  with  what  to  observe,  if 
you  wish  to  know  the  children  and  their  varying  modes 
of  brain  action  as  you  may  learn  to  see  them.     Thus  :  — 


MOVEMENTS  CLASSIFIED  75 

1.  Uniformly  repeated  series  of  movements. 

2.  Augmenting  or  increasing  series  of  movements. 

3.  Lessening  or  diminishing  series  of  movements. 
4»  Coordinated  or  regulated  series  of  movements. 

Each  of  these  modes  of  movement  has  been  men- 
tioned in  describing  the  general  character  of  brain 
action ;  examples  with  reference  to  what  has  already 
been  said  will  make  you  familiar  with  the  points  to 
look  for,  and  give  them  a  further  significance  when 
you  recognise  them  in  the  children  you  observe. 

(i)  In  uniform  movements  the  same  parts  of  the 
body  move  in  the  same  way  over  and  over  again ; 
this  is  often  seen  in  tricks  or  habits  such  as :  turn- 
ing the  head  frequently  to  the  same  shoulder ; 
nodding  the  head,  or  turning  it  from  side  to  side  in 
speaking ;  raising  the  forearm  towards  the  forehead 
as  if  saluting ;  protruding  the  tongue  when  asked  a 
question.  Some  of  the  subnormal  nerve  signs  de- 
scribed are  uniformly  repeated  movements,  such  as  : 
horizontal  frowning  (frontal  muscles  overacting),  re- 
peated knitting  of  the  eyebrows  (corrugation),  and 
grinning,  which  is  sometimes  one  sided.  Tapping 
with  the  foot  on  the  floor ;  swinging  the  knee ;  drum- 
ming with  the  fingers  on  the  table ;  twisting  the 
thumbs  when  unoccupied ;  or  tearing  up  a  piece  of 
paper  while  talking,  —  are  other  examples  of  uniformly 
repeated  movement.      Some   of  these   habits   indicate 


76  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

spontaneity  with  lack  of  control ;  while,  inasmuch  as 
they  are  persistent,  they  show  retentiveness,  but  of 
a  low  type,  and  want  of  coordination  in  brain  action. 
Sometimes  they  replace  spreading  movement. 

(2)  In  an  augmenting  series  of  movements  fresh 
parts  come  into  action  as  it  spreads,  the  number  of 
parts  seen  moving  increases.  Laughter  usually  begins 
about  the  mouth  and  spreads  upwards ;  but  when  mak- 
ing observations  on  children  under  restraint  in  schools, 
I  have  seen  the  first  indications  in  twitching  fingers, 
spreading  later  to  the  face.  A  smiling  expression  of 
pleasure  may,  I  think,  commence  in  the  forehead.  A 
quick,  jerking  set  of  movements  may  be  seen  when  a 
nervous  child  is  startled  on  being  suddenly  spoken  to ; 
the  shoulders  and  arms  being  jerked  so  that  the 
hands  are  (involuntarily)  pushed  forwards,  and  may 
displace  things  from  the  desk ;  then  the  head  may  be 
turned,  the  eyes  moved  every  way,  and  twitching  may 
spread  from  the  mouth  to  the  fingers.  Spreading 
movement  in  passion  I  have  sufficiently  described 
(Chapter  II.,  p.  44);  the  same  occurs  with  display  of 
most  of  the  emotions,  and  is  seen  markedly  in  joy  when 
the  child  skips  with  happiness  (see  Chapter  V.,  p.  96). 
Stammering  consists  in  a  spreading  spasm,  seen  in  the 
lips,  tongue,  and  forehead. 

(3)  A  lessening  series  of  movements  is  seen  when 
quietness  replaces  the  natural  spontaneity  of  action  in 
many  parts  of  the  body  before  class  work,   subsiding 


MOVEMENT  AND   EXPRESSION  ^J 

gradually  to  the  attitude  of  attention ;  or,  at  the  end 
of  the  day,  as  activity  decreases,  talkativeness  lessen- 
ing, expression  lessening,  and  the  eyelids  closing  in 
restfulness  and  then  sleep.  An  increasing  mode  of 
movement  seen  previously  in  passion,  joy,  emotion, 
at  length  gradually  subsides  to  a  moderate  degree  of 
quietness,  or  it  may  be  to  the  stillness  of  exhaustion 
without  movement.  Well  controlled  and  coordinated 
action  (voluntarily)  lessens  after  continued  persistence, 
continuing  in  fewer  parts,  which  may  move  more 
slowly.  Thus :  expression  may  begin  to  fade  from  the 
face,  the  eyes  move  less  frequently  to  the  book,  and 
its  pages  are  hardly  turned  over.  The  previously 
increasing  area  of  spasm  in  stammering  subsides  on 
relaxing  effort,  leaving  the  forehead,  then  the  mouth 
and  tongue  are  relaxed  to  quietness.  In  the  child 
recovering  from  chorea,  the  area  of  movements 
lessens  as  health  improves. 

(4)  A  coordinated  series  of  movements  indicates 
much  that  we  desire  to  see  in  the  child.  Such  a 
mode  of  movement  has  a  special  character  dependent 
upon  the  time  and  degree  of  each  component  act. 
When  playing  a  scale  of  music  the  fingers  are  directed 
by  the  printed  exercise,  and  move  in  an  arranged 
order.  You  may  make  similar  movements  of  hands 
and  fingers  before  a  class  of  children,  as  an  exercise 
for  their  imitation  and  practice.  Coordinated  move- 
ments of  the  hands   and  fingers   are  seen  in  drawing 


78  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

and  writing,  and  in  manipulative  work,  where  each 
movement  is  prearranged  —  just  as  the  notes  arrange 
the  hand  movements  for  the  music  scale.  This  is 
practised  in  sloyd  work  accurately  performed,  and  in 
the  occupations  of  the  Kindergarten.  All  these  con- 
trolled actions  in  young  children  are  likely  to  be  ac- 
companied by  some  spontaneity  in  movement  of  the 
head,  eyes,  and  fingers,  while  still  the  major  part  of 
the  work  represents  coordinated  action. 

Eye-movements  are  often  incoordinated,  wandering, 
not  exactly  directed  to  what  is  pointed  out,  or  towards 
what  the  child  is  told  to  look  at. 

Facial  and  mouth  movements  are  coordinated  in 
speech  with  those  of  the  tongue,  both  when  sounds  are 
taught  and  when  syllables  are  formed  into  articulate 
words;  expression  in  the  face  is  similarly  controlled 
by  sight  in  imitation  of  the  teacher.  Marching,  and 
the  exercises  of  drill  show  movements  of  the  legs  and 
arms  coordinated  with  the  action  of  the  muscles  of  the 
spine  and  head. 

It  will  occur  to  you  that  coordinated  action  is  the 
essential  feature  of  good  games.  In  the  cricket  field 
the  boys  stand  straight  and  easy  ready  for  the  play, 
the  bowler  ready,  and  the  batsman  prepared  to  hit  and 
run.  Action  in  the  batsman  is  coordinated  by  sight 
of  the  flying  ball,  and  as  he  runs  by  seeing  the  fields- 
men. The  boys  who  are  fielding  are  regulated  in 
action   by   sight   of   one  another  and  of   the  ball.     In 


COORDINATED   ACTION  79 

earliest  infancy  we  do  not  see  coordinated  action,  this 
is  a  later  development ;  spreading  area  of  movement 
occurs  earlier.  Coordinated  action  is  opposed  to  some 
of  the  subnormal  nerve  signs  described,  and  forms  the 
best  means  for  their  removal. 

When  speaking  of  evolution  in  nature  in  the  next 
chapter  it  will  be  shown  that  modes  of  growth  are 
commonly  seen  in  living  things  occurring  uniformly  in 
repetition  of  parts  ;  in  augmentation  or  diminution  of 
living  parts,  and  also,  in  action  coordinated  by  the 
environment.  This  is  one  indication  that  the  scientific 
principles  employed  in  studying  living  objects  and  the 
methods  of  natural  history  may  be  applied  to  the 
study  of  action  and  mind  in  the  child.^ 

Points  of  several  kinds  have  now  been  given  for  use 
in  observing  and  describing  a  child  as  you  may  see 
him  in  school ;  it  remains  to  say  something  about 
health  and  nutrition,  as  well  as  the  examination  of  the 
senses,  which  should  form  a  part  of  your  description. 
In  Chapter  V.  I  shall  more  particularly  describe  the 
processes  inferred  to  occur  in  the  brain  of  the  child 
under  observation,  showing  something  of  their  con- 
nection with  indications  of  mental  processes,  and  the 
abilities  and  disabilities  of  children  as  we  find  them ; 
thus  we  shall  gradually  proceed  to  describe  all  we  can 
of  the  child  as  we  see  him  in  being. 

1  See  "  Anatomy  of  Movement :  A  Treatise  on  Action  of  Nerve-centres 
and  Modes  of  Growth."    The  Macmillan  Company. 


8o  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

Speaking  generally,  the  weight  and  the  height, 
with  the  chest  girth,  are  sufficient  indications  of  good 
growth,  and  to  this  may  be  added  some  measurements 
of  the  head.  Children  may  be  fat  in  face,  but  other- 
wise thin ;  this  is  frequently  the  case  with  nervous 
children ;  the  body  may  be  large  and  heavy,  with  low 
nerve-muscular  power ;  on  the  other  hand,  some  children 
are  thin,  but  wiry,  and  really  strong. 

Nutrition  in  the  body  may  be  judged  by  fulness  of 
the  face  and  cheeks,  or  plumpness,  and  by  the  muscular 
development  of  the  arms  and  legs  as  seen  and  felt. 
The  colour  of  the  face  and  lips  should  also  be  noticed. 
The  skin  should  be  both  clean  and  clear  from  sores 
and  abrasions  about  the  angles  of  the  mouth  or  nose, 
while  the  hands  are  free  from  cracks  and  chilblains ; 
the  nails  are  also  worth  inspection ;  there  should  be  no 
enlargement  of  glands  under  the  jaw  or  in  the  neck. 

Looking  at  the  eyes,  they  should  be  clear  and  bright, 
as  well  as  free  from  all  discharge;  on  gently  depressing 
the  lower  lid  with  your  finger,  its  inner  lining  is  seen 
pale  and  clean  in  good  health. 

A  momentary  inspection  of  the  mouth  will  enable 

you  to  view  the  palate  and  see  its  form ;  the  condition 

» of  the  teeth  is  noteworthy ;  while  the  tonsils  are  seen 

on  each  side  of  the  throat  in  front  of  the  soft  palate, 

which  rises  as  you  make  the  child  say  "Ah  ! " 

Sight  may  be  tested  by  using  printed  test  type,  which 
should  be  provided  in  every  school,  and  kept  clean  and 


DESCRIPTION   OF  CHILDREN  8 1 

used  in  a  good  light ;  test  each  eye  separately  for  near 
and  for  distant  vision. 

Hearing  you  may  test  with  your  watch,  noting  the 
distance  as  measured  by  a  tape  at  which  it  is  heard 
with  each  ear.  Your  voice  is  a  better  test,  and  has 
the  advantage  that  you  can  make  him  repeat  what  you 
say;  whispered  speech  should  be  heard  at  twenty-five 
feet.  Test  each  ear  separately,  and  do  not  let  the  child 
see  your  face,  or  he  may  read  what  you  say  from  your 
lips. 

In  proceeding  to  record  a  description  of  your  ob- 
servations, it  is  important  to  arrange  the  points  seen 
as  to  their  kind  or  significance ;  this  may  conveniently 
begin  by  describing  the  body  as  in  the  form  or  chart 
used  here.  Such  description  of  the  child  as  we  see 
him  in  action,  together  with  an  account  of  his  school 
character,  renders  it  possible  to  discuss  the  points  of 
the  case  from  several  positions. 

Many  children  are  described  in  "The  Study  of  Chil- 
dren and  their  School  Training " ;  the  form  of  chart 
here  employed  I  first  used  in  my  articles  in  School 
World. 

A   Child   Well   Developed   in   Body    and    Brain  :    Much 
Spontaneity,  but  it  is  under  Control 

Age  last  birthday.     8  years.  Name,     C.  (boy) . 

A.  Body :  development,  features,  etc. 

Head.     Normal  in  form  and  proportions. 

G 


82  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

Face.  Good,  well-proportioned  features ;  all  of  sufficient 
size. 

Ears.     Average  ;  all  parts  developed. 

Nose.     Normal. 

Palate.     Sufficiently  wide ;  good  teeth. 

Growth.     Height,  48^  inches.      Body  and  limbs  well 
proportioned 
B.   Nerve  signs :  postures,  movements,  action. 

General  balance  of  body.  Stands  well  and  straight,  full 
of  healthy  spontaneity,  head  and  eyes  turn  every- 
where, especially  to  teacher  and  the  objects  on  the 
table. 

Expression.  Lively,  looks  pleased  and  interested.  Fore- 
head smooth. 

Orbicularis  oculi.  Good  tone  in  face  about  eyes ;  in- 
creased when  he  smiles. 

Eye-movements.  Turn  well  to  fix  on  teacher's  hand 
when  imitating  movements. 

Head  balance.     Held  well  up. 

Hands.  Held  out  straight  in  prompt  response,  the 
fingers  move  a  little.  After  hands  have  been  kept 
out  half  a  minute  the  head  droops  to  the  right,  but  is 
quickly  erect  again  when  hands  are  put  down.  Imita- 
tion of  finger  movements  fairly  accurate ;  response 
quick. 
Indications  of  modes  of  brain  action. 

Spontaneity.  Up  to  average  for  age  ;  good  tone  of  face, 
and  is  always  ready  for  action  or  to  make  some 
reply. 

Impressionability.  Present  in  a  degree  indicating  that  he 
will  probably  develop  good  capacity  for  control  through 
his  senses  and  in  coordination. 


A  HEALTHY  CHILD  83 

Inhibition.  Is  generally  quiet  during  class,  and  attentive ; 
after  work  is  fresh  and  full  of  play  and  talk. 

Control  through  senses.  Action  fairly  accurate  as  con- 
trolled by  sight  of  what  he  looks  at. 

Muscular  sense.  Can  distinguish  the  weight  of  seeds ; 
also  makes  measurement  at  sight  fairly  well;  counts 
objects  accurately. 

Compound  cerebration.  Not  very  successful  in  manipu- 
lation, except  under  guidance. 

Retentiveness.  He  evidently  remembers  some  of  the 
points  he  has  been  taught,  and  performs  his  physical 
exercises  better  than  last  year.  His  thoughts  do  not 
follow  in  as  good  order  as  his  movements. 

Coordination.  Imitates  manual  exercise,  with  fair  accu- 
racy as  to  the  fingers  moving ;  not  quite  correct  in  time 
of  action. 

Spreading  area.  No  habitually  repeated  overaction. 
When  a  Httle  fatigued,  his  head  droops. 

Response  delayed.  When  he  answers  a  question,  his  reply 
is  prompt,  whether  correct  or  not ;  there  is  very  little 
pause  for  thinking.  His  replies  come  out  like  reflex 
actions  rather  than  as  resulting  from  a  train  of  thought 
which  occupies  some  interval. 
C.  Physical  health  and  nutrition.    Healthy  and  well.   Weight, 

55  lbs.,  average. 
School  report.    A  very  bright  but  mischievous  boy,  is  liked 

by  his  schoolmates.     Fairly  attentive  and  interested  in 

his  lessons  ;  reads  well,  and  answers  very  promptly. 
Observer's  report  on  child.     A  well-made   healthy   child, 

with  good  brain  activity.      The  healthy  spontaneity  of 

childhood    is   well   marked ;    this   is    easily   controlled 

through  eyes  or  ears,  and  resumed  in  a  healthy  manner 


84  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

when  control  is  removed.  There  was  no  excess  of  extra 
movement  accompanying  his  action,  but  as  fatigue  com- 
menced from  the  strain  of  holding  out  his  hands,  the  head 
began  to  droop. 

A  normal,  or  healthy,  well-made  child  is  known  by 
the  development  and  proportioning  of  his  head  and 
features,  and  other  points  which  have  been  sufficiently 
described  to  enable  you,  after  some  practice,  to  recog- 
nise any  subnormal  conditions  by  their  contrast  with 
the  normal. 

The  nerve  signs,  individually  and  collectively,  indi- 
cate, like  the  hands  of  a  clock,  what  is  going  on  in- 
side the  child's  head;  that  is  to  say,  the  present 
working  condition  of  his  brain.  They  may  vary  on 
different  occasions  and  under  different  circumstances, 
just  as  mental  status  may  vary. 

We  must  exert  our  minds  in  studying  the  children's 
brains.  It  is  true  that  the  child  tends  to  imitate  your 
expression,  but  your  thoughts  are  not  his  thoughts, 
the  modes  of  thinking  differ ;  he  has  not  yet  acquired 
your  mental  faculties  and  experience;  he  is  childlike, 
and  must  be  observed  carefully  if  you  wish  to  study 
his  brain  action.  Observe  him  under  different  circum- 
stances, when  he  is  attentive,  and  when  he  is  disen- 
gaged and  does  not  see  you,  in  the  schoolroom  and 
in  the  playground,  so  you  will  be  able  to  recognise 
the  general  indications  of  his  brain  in  action,  as  apart 
from  detailed  nerve  signs  seen  in  class  or  otherwise. 


NATURE-STUDY  AND  CHILD-STUDY  85 

In  the  teacher's  mind  the  best  interests  of  the 
children  should  stand  before  his  own ;  even  the 
natural  desire  for  self-culture  in  the  higher  branches 
of  learning  ought  not  to  lead  him  to  spend  his  time 
to  the  disadvantage  of  his  class  in  undue  devotion  to 
private  study,  leading  to  fatigue.  I  have  seen  a  school- 
master, exhausted  by  night  study  when  working  for 
a  B.  A.  degree,  whose  pupils  in  class  all  imitated  the 
signs  of  his  fatigue  and  lassitude. 

You  must  train  yourselves  by  constant  practice  to 
become  good  observers.  Dr.  Stanley  Hall  and  other 
leaders  in  child-study  have  urged  that  teachers  should 
observe  the  children  after  the  methods  of  natural 
history ;  to  this  you  add  the  contents  of  their  minds 
in  each  case,  and  thus  obtain  a  fuller  knowledge  of 
the  mental  action  accompanying  what  you  see  and 
hear.  The  child  in  mind  and  body  is  a  part  of 
nature's  work.^ 

I  am  here  endeavouring  to  show  you  what  to  look 
at  and  what  to  look  for,  as  well  as  to  supply  the 
means  of  description.  If  you  will  look  out  for  each 
point  —  and  there  are  plenty  of  examples  in  any 
school  —  you  will  acquire  useful  knowledge  that  will 
enable  you  to  draw  rapid  inferences,  and  lead  to  a 
ripened  experience  of  great  value  throughout  life. 

The   methods   of   study  here   employed   will  enable 

1  See  author's  "  Mental  Faculty,"  Chapter  I.  The  Macmillan  Com- 
pany. 


86  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

you  to  give  scientific  descriptions  of  your  children 
founded  on  observation,  indicating  what  you  really 
see  as  signs  of  their  happiness,  peevishness,  fatigue, 
or  nervousness.  These  methods  will  further  enable 
you  to  grasp  a  high  ideal  of  the  teacher's  work,  as 
you  trace  out  the  modes  of  brain  action  indicated  by 
the  various  mental  states  of  the  pupils,  and  learn  to 
understand  their  relations  to  one  another  and  how  to 
deal  with  them.  In  your  methods  of  observation  and 
study  my  experience  may  afford  some  help ;  your 
methods  of  management  in  school  must  be  guided  by 
your  own  minds  and  personal  study. 

Pierre  Camper  (1792)  wrote  as  an  artist,  and  de- 
scribes joy  and  laughter.  He  says  :  "In  complacency, 
friendly  greetings,  and  tacit  joy,  the  angles  of  the 
mouth  must  never  be  drawn  up  alone,  without  the 
tokens  of  an  incipient  smile."  He  thus  refers  to  the 
gentle  spread  of  movement  seen  in  the  face,  while 
the  increased  spreading  action  in  laughter  is  further 
indicated.  "In  laughter  all  the  effects  produced  by 
the  former  affection  are  greatly  increased,  and  others 
are  superadded.  The  whole  countenance  inclines 
forwards,  but  without  the  attention  being  fixed  upon 
any  determinate  object.  The  muscles  around  the  eye- 
lids are  contracted,  producing  wrinkles  and  folds  around 
the  eyes.  The  lips  are  opened,  and  the  teeth,  particu- 
larly the  upper,  are  made  to  appear;  small  wrinkles 
arise  at  the  corners  of  the  mouth  and  the  cheeks  become 


ARTISTS   DESCRIBE   EXPRESSION  8/ 

fuller."  Sir  Charles  Bell  writes :  ^  "  I  hope  my  reader 
consents  to  believe  that  the  capacity  of  expression  is 
bestowed  as  a  boon,  a  mark  of  superior  intelligence, 
and  a  source  of  enjoyment;  and  that  its  very  nature  is 
to  excite  sympathy ;  that  it  radiates,  and  is  understood 
by  all ;  that  it  is  the  bond  of  the  human  family.  .  .  . 
Observe  the  conditions  of  a  man  convulsed  with  laugh- 
ter, and  consider  what  are  the  organs  or  system  of 
parts  affected.  He  draws  a  full  breath,  and  throws  it 
out  in  interrupted,  short,  and  audible  cachinnations ;  the 
muscles  of  his  throat,  neck,  and  chest  are  agitated.  He 
holds  his  sides,  and,  from  the  violent  agitation,  he  is 
incapable  of  a  voluntary  act."  To  such  expressions 
of  joy  in  the  child  may  be  added  movements  of  the 
shoulders,  which  are  drawn  up  and  down,  as  well  as 
opening  and  closing  the  fingers  and  movements  of  the 
whole  body  by  the  feet,  accompanied  by  shouting.  You 
thus  see  much  spontaneity,  while  impressionability  is 
only  momentary,  not  producing  control,  and  all  artificial 
manner  is  lost  (no  compound  cerebral  action) ;  there  is 
a  wide-spreading  area  of  action  and  no  delay  to  such 
impressions  as  the  child  receives  through  his  senses. 
Movements  are  anything  but  uniform,  they  tend  to 
increase,  as  in  all  expression  of  emotion  —  ultimately 
subsiding  and  become  controlled  or  coordinated  again, 
when  the  movements  are  slower  with  some  pauses. 
Irritability  and  peevishness  are  generally  accompa- 

1  "Anatomy  and  Philosophy  of  Expression,"  third  edition,  1844. 


S8  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

nied  by  the  signs  of  fatigue ;  the  natural  expression 
of  the  face  is  partially  lost,  there  is  often  fulness  under 
the  eyes  and  frowning,  with  pursing  or  contraction  of 
the  mouth,  which  is  the  opposite  to  the  expression  of 
joy  fulness.  Such  spontaneity  as  exists  is  neither  con- 
trollable nor  capable  of  inhibition ;  this  is  partly  shown 
in  disjointed  utterances.  All  established  manners 
(modes  of  compound  cerebration)  are  for  the  time  lost, 
while  impressions  by  sight  or  sound  lead  to  short, 
jerky,  spreading  movements.  A  touch  on  the  shoulders 
makes  him  wriggle ;  his  head  turns  away  from  his 
food ;  he  makes  no  response  in  words  to  a  question 
or  inquiry,  no  normal  reactions  occur.  The  child 
should  be  judged  at  his  best,  and  not  when  fatigued 
and  irritable. 

Camper,  in  referring  to  the  descriptions  of  expression 
by  many  authors,  says,  I  think  justly,  that  "they  have 
usually  either  confined  themselves  to  appearances  or 
have  reasoned  metaphysically  concerning  the  opera- 
tions of  the  mind,  without  attending  to  the  physical 
causes  of  the  changes  produced  by  these  operations ; 
but  in  my  opinion  speculations  concerning  the  manner 
of  the  soul's  working  or  concerning  the  seat  of  the  soul 
are  of  no  use  to  the  artist.  These  belong  to  meta- 
physicians, who,  by  the  way,  lose  themselves  in  a  laby- 
rinth of  terms,  or  words  with  no  definite  meaning,  without 
having  in  the  least  explained  the  action  of  this  immortal 
principle  upon  the  compound  and  mortal  frame." 


CULTURE  OF  BRAIN  ACTION  89 

A  careful  and  detailed  study  of  the  points  observed 
in  cases  of  brain  disorder  and  in  children  of  mental 
deficiency,  in  contrast  with  those  well  developed,  bright, 
and  active,  enabled  me  to  define  the  subnormal  nerve 
signs  described  in  Chapter  III.  Thus  a  number  of 
points  for  observation  are  presented,  each  of  which 
when  seen  has  some  significance.  The  signs  indicating 
brain  disorderliness  you  want  to  replace  by  training  the 
general  characters  of  good  modes  of  brain  action.  Thus 
you  cultivate  the  excessive  spontaneity  of  restlessness 
or  emotion  to  become  action  controlled  by  guidance, 
and  try  to  replace  the  spreading  activity  of  fidgetiness 
by  organised  work,  and  by  games ;  the  confusion  aris- 
ing from  seeing,  hearing,  and  feeling  at  the  same  time, 
you  remove  by  methodical  procedure  in  looking  care- 
fully, attending  to  what  may  be  felt  in  handling  objects, 
and  in  hearing  distinctly  what  is  said.  (Example  in 
Chapter  VIII.,  p.  103.) 

Means  are  afforded  for  describing  your  observations, 
which  indicate  physical  conditions  of  the  body  —  the 
developmental  signs  and  the  nutrition  of  the  body; 
while  the  state  of  brain  action  will  afford  much  in- 
formation as  to  some  causes  of  mental  dulness  and  the 
directions  in  which  you  may  most  effectively  try  to 
remove  them.  It  is  quite  possible,  as  experience  has 
shown,  to  discriminate  in  a  school  the  children  whose 
brains  are  disorderly  and  untrained,  by  observing  them 
without  asking  the  questions  necessary   for   a   purely 


90  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

mental  examination ;  nearly  all  the  dull  and  backward 
pupils  may  be  thus  grouped  quickly  as  needing  your 
further  attention  in  training,  while  those  well  built,  with 
good  and  healthy  brains,  are  discriminated  at  the  same 
time.  Thus  for  the  purposes  of  school  management 
and  classification  you  can  obtain  records  of  the  chil- 
dren with  nervous  disturbance  or  incoordination  and 
defective  response,  as  well  as  those  pale,  thin,  or  deli- 
cate. Facts  thus  accumulated,  and  inferences  drawn 
from  them,  will  afford  you  a  sound  experience;  that 
is  why  you  will,  I  think,  find  it  both  interesting  and 
useful  to  study  children  after  the  methods  of  natural 
history.^ 

A  Child  of  Nervous  Type 

Age  last  birthday .     14  years.  Name.     (gi^l). 

A,   Body :  development,  features,  etc. 

Head.     Of  good  volume  and  well  shaped,  circumference, 

21.5  inches.     Forehead  broad  and  high. 
Face.     Features  in  good  proportion.     Eye-openings  and 

mouth  of  sufficient  size. 
Ears.    Well  made  in  rim  and  pleat  of  the  ear,  alike  on 

either  side. 
Nose.     Normal,  breathes  with  lips  closed. 
Palate.     Sufficiently  wide  ;  good  teeth,  not  crowded. 
Growth.      Height,  60.5  inches  (average  for  age,  60.32 

inches) .    The  body  well  proportioned,  hands  and  feet 

rather  small. 

1  See  Reports,  References  i,  37,  44. 


A  NERVOUS  CHILD  9I 

B,  Nerve  signs :  postures,  movements,  action. 

General  balance  of  body.  Does  not  stand  straight  or 
keep  quite  still.  Shoulders  not  at  same  level.  Feet 
unequally  planted. 

Expression.  Bright  and  changeful ;  a  spreading  smile 
often  seen,  and  sometimes  twitching  of  the  mouth. 

Orbicularis  oculi.  Want  of  good  tone  about  the  lower  eye- 
lids, but  this  disappears  when  interested  and  in  smiling. 

Eye-movements.  Can  fix  eyes  well,  but  they  often 
wander  when  not  directed. 

Head  balance.  Head  not  bent  down,  but  often  falls  a 
little  to  one  side  or  is  turned  about. 

Hands.  Held  out  promptly  in  response,  the  left  a  little 
lower  than  the  right,  while  neither  is  on  a  level  with 
the  shoulder.  Each  balances  in  the  "nervous  pos- 
ture," especially  the  left ;  this  becomes  more  marked 
if  the  effort  is  maintained ;  there  are  twitchings  of  the 
fingers.  This  action  is  accompanied  by  some  bending 
of  the  lower  part  of  the  spine,  while  the  shoulders  are 
thrown  back.  Response  is  prompt,  action  is  quick 
and  well  imitated  from  others,  but  is  often  accompanied 
by  some  extra  movements  besides  those  under  control. 
Indications  of  modes  of  brain  action. 

Spontaneity.  Fidgets  while  standing,  feet  shuffle,  fingers 
twitch.  The  head  is  often  turned  about,  the  eyes 
wander,  she  smiles  frequently,  and  is  active  in  play. 

Impressionability.  Quick  to  receive  all  impressions ; 
looks  at  every  one  who  speaks  in  the  class ;  is  not 
always  completely  under  control. 

Inhibition.  While  prompt  to  stand  when  directed,  there 
remains  some  fidgeting  of  the  hands  with  the  dress 
or  hair ;  she  is  never  quite  still. 


92  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

Control  through  senses.  Good  capacity,  but  sometimes 
listens  and  looks  about  instead  of  seeing  the  black- 
board or  map  demonstration.  At  times  starts  and 
fidgets  when  spoken  to. 

Muscle  sense.  Appreciates  and  compares  weights  in  the 
hands  well ;  knows  coins  by  feeling  them.  Estimates 
dimensions  better  by  feeUng  with  the  hands  than  at 
sight. 

Compound  cerebration.  Physical  exercises  well  per- 
formed ;  can  lead  the  class  without  being  guided. 
Proceeds  systematically  to  examine  and  describe  a 
flower  as  previously  taught.  Generally  repeats  a  lesson 
correctly. 

Retentiveness.  Memory  really  good  ;  but  forgets  where 
to  find  things  from  not  looking  to  see  when  putting  them 
away ;  can  retain  facts  learnt,  but  does  not  always  use 
them  aright. 

Coordination.  Imitates  hand  movements  well,  but  is 
not  quite  accurate.  Such  action  is  often  accompanied 
by  some  extra  movements.  Speaks  well;  good  at 
games. 

Spreading  area.  Extra  movements  with  the  pen  seen 
before  writing,  while  at  times  the  fingers  twitch  on  the 
pen.  The  head  often  turns  upward  while  thinking ;  or 
is  held  on  one  side  when  speaking,  or  when  the  hands 
are  held  out.  She  tends  to  laughter  and  talkativeness. 
Sometimes  there  is  confusion  in  replies ;  facts  of 
history  are  remembered  but  given  in  the  wrong  places. 

Response.     Quick  both  in  action  and  in  words ;  generally 
without  a  pause  for  thinking. 
C.   Physical  Health  and  Nutrition.     Not  pale,  but  a  little  thin 

for  her  stature ;  weight,  98  lbs.    Average  weight  for  age 


A  NERVOUS  CHILD  93 

is  100.32  lbs.,  but  the  child  is  a  little  above  the  average 
height ;  farther,  she  has  probably  not  yet  completed  her 
growth  which  last  year  increased  by  1.75  inches  as 
against  an  average  of  1.57  for  her  age,  while  weight 
increased  only  8  lbs.  as  compared  with  the  average  which 
is  9.14  lbs. 

School  Report.  In  disposition  affectionate,  sometimes 
loses  self-control,  becoming  emotional  and  passionate. 

Observer's  Report  on  the  Child.  This  girl  is  well  developed 
in  head  and  features,  as  well  as  in  bodily  growth.  There 
is  a  little  asymmetry  in  nerve-muscular  action  ;  some 
tendency  to  spreading  activity  in  the  brain,  both  for 
movement  and  thoughts,  and  as  this  is  not  always  under 
control  we  see  what  are  commonly  called  some  signs  of 
the  nervous  type. 

Mental  capacity,  as  is  usual  with  these  children,  is  quick 
and  the  memory  retentive,  but  expression  is  not  always 
exact. 

She  is  a  little  pale  and  under  weight ;  general  health  culture 
together  with  continued  training  are  needed.  Her  con- 
dition is  hopeful,  but  she  might  easily  be  spoilt,  becom- 
ing anaemic  and  dyspeptic  if  health  is  not  cared  for,  or 
neurotic  and  excitable  and  hysterical  if  not  properly  con- 
trolled during  the  next  two  or  three  years ;  while  under 
bad  hygienic  conditions  some  permanent  ill  health  is 
likely  to  arise. 


CHAPTER   V 
Evolution  of  the  Child  and  his  Brain  Power 

The  child  grows,  whether  he  be  trained  and  edu- 
cated or  not ;  the  brain  grows  with  the  body,  and  some 
of  the  characters  of  brain  action  will  develop,  pro- 
ducing either  good,  bad,  or  indifferent  work  and 
character  in  the  future.  The  mode  of  evolution  much 
depends  upon  home  life  and  the  care  taken  in  school. 

It  is  too  often  supposed  that  the  brain  acts  well 
or  badly,  is  fatigued,  excited,  or  sleepy,  as  a  whole; 
thus  assuming  that  all  its  parts  are  in  the  same  con- 
dition. Your  understanding  of  the  brain  in  action, 
as  inferred  from  what  you  see  in  the  child,  will  be 
greatly  aided  by  constantly  bearing  in  mind  that  the 
bits  of  brain  —  or  brain  centres,  as  we  call  them  — 
act  more  or  less  separately,  as  well  as  in  collective 
groups.  Thus,  the  brain,  as  a  whole,  may  be  com- 
pared to  a  regiment  of  soldiers  on  review ;  each 
man,  company,  and  battalion,  has  orders  to  carry 
out;  the  men  in  the  company  act  together,  thdr 
united  action  being  directed  by  the  officers,  and  the 
whole  manoeuvre  by  the  colonel  of  the  regiment,  who 
receives  his  orders  from  the  War  Department.  It  is 
essential    to    remember    this    separate    action   of    the 

94 


THE  CHILDREN  OF  A  FAMILY  95 

brain  centres  when  trying  to  understand  the  general 
characters  of  brain  action  indicated  by  your  observa- 
tions. The  brain  is  an  aggregation  of  nerve  centres, 
much  of  whose  action  is  expressed  by  the  movements 
they  produce  and  which  we  see ;  while  further  modes 
of  their  interaction  among  the  nerve  centres  may  be 
inferred  from  observation. 

It  is  now  commonly  accepted  knowledge  that  some 
kind  of  evolution  occurs  in  nature,  generally  to  the 
improvement  of  the  race ;  the  same  is  seen  in  fami- 
lies, and  with  the  advancement  of  a  child  if  placed 
under  favourable  circumstances,  so  that  happily  the 
children  often  attain  to  a  higher  physical  and  mental 
standard  of  development  than  their  parents.  We 
usually  see  the  children  in  a  family  bearing  a  strong 
resemblance  to  one  or  other  parent  in  some  points; 
at  the  same  time  there  are  often  marked  differences 
in  the  characters  of  the  members  of  the  same  family, 
with  improvement  upon  their  inheritance  in  some  par- 
ticulars. It  results,  that  in  a  family,  as  in  a  school, 
many  varieties  of  children  may  be  seen,  differing  in  type 
of  features,  in  health,  and  in  their  brain  characteristics. 

Again,  the  individual  child  changes  much  as  age 
progresses,  and  his  brain  faculties  evolve ;  character 
is  formed  under  training  and  guidance,  the  natural 
tendencies  may  be  developed  or  in  part  suppressed, 
and  mental  character  thus  improved. 

Physiological  terms  of  description  in  child-study  en- 


96  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

able  us  to  appreciate  resemblances  and  differences; 
mental  status  may  thus  be  compared  and  traced  in 
evolution  from  childhood  to  manhood  —  sometimes 
with  periods  of  reversion  to  childishness. 

Does  laughter  express  joy,  and  crying  pain  or 
sorrow  ?  We  see  that  laughter  indicates  a  spreading 
mode  of  brain  action ;  so  does  crying,  as  the  emotional 
storm  spreads  —  hence  the  kinship  between  laughing 
and  crying;  the  one  may  pass  on  to  the  other  in  the  ex- 
pression of  emotion.  (See  Chapter  III.,  p.  51.)  Among 
children  too  much  similarity  in  manners  and  in  expres- 
sion may  result  from  a  limited  experience,  that  is, 
from  too  little  freedom ;  this  dwarfs  the  evolution  of 
individuality.  Insufficient  control  by  varied  surround- 
ings leads  to  the  formation  of  but  little  of  the  real 
character,  which  results  from  many  experiences  re- 
ceived and  retained.  Mental  evolution  is  seen  in  the 
acquisition  of  knowledge  and  fixed  trains  of  thought, 
as  also  in  retention  of  the  impressions  necessary  for 
comparison,  and  the  terms  employed  in  description 
and  as  aids  to  memory ;  these  impressions  interact 
in  the  brain. 

I  hope  the  reader  has  seen  for  himself  many  of  the 
facts  that  may  be  easily  observed  in  the  movements  and 
response  of  the  child ;  this  will  prepare  the  way  for  a 
ready  appreciation  of  what  has  here  to  be  explained  as 
to  the  evolution  of  mental  powers,  as  far  as  they  can  be 
traced  among  the  nerve  centres  of  the  brain. 


GROWTH   AND    MOVEMENT  97 

The  principles  of  evolution  as  the  methods  of  nature 
led  me  to  look  for  a  classification  of  processes  of  growth 
that  might  be  arranged  in  the  same  manner  as  for 
movements,  and  the  modes  of  brain  action  correspond- 
ing to  mental  expression  ;  it  seemed  probable  that  all 
modes  of  evolution  would  have  some  resemblances. 

The  study  of  observations  in  plants  and  animals 
showed  me  that  there  are  many  points  of  analogy  be- 
tween growth  and  movement,  which  throw  light  upon 
the  understanding  of  each.^  In  child-study  you  will 
soon  be  convinced  that  healthy  growth  of  the  head  and 
body  are  usual  accompaniments  of  good  brain  power 
seen  in  movement  and  response. 

These  principles  of  natural  history  may  be  applied 
by  way  of  illustration  to  the  description  of  movements, 
arranged  in  four  classes,  as  given  in  Chapter  IV. 
Each  class  of  modes  in  growth  among  the  parts  and 
structures  of  plants  as  here  given  has  its  analogy  in  the 
classes  of  movements  before  described. 

Uniformly  repeated  growth  resembles  uniform  re- 
peated movement  in  the  order  of  the  events  occurring 
with  but  little  variety.  Look  at  a  young  sprig  of  ivy 
growing  on  a  smooth  wall;  leaf  after  leaf  has  grown 
similar  in  shape  and  in  size,  each  leaf  arises  at  equal 
distances  apart ;  this  looks  simple  as  compared  with  the 
developmental  growth  of   buds  and  flowers.     Nodding 

1  See  Author's  "  Anatomy  of  Movement :  a  Treatise  on  the  Action  of 
Nerve-centres  and  Modes  of  Growth."     The  Macmillan  Company. 
H 


98  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

the  head  repeatedly  is  a  simple  movement  when  com- 
pared with  writing  a  letter. 

An  increasing  number  of  parts  growing  is  seen  in  the 
development  of  a  chestnut  bud  where  the  inner  scales 
grow  longer,  the  axis  elongates,  leaves  are  formed,  and 
finally  a  number  of  flowers  are  produced.  The  new 
shoot  bearing  flowers  is  a  wonderful  development  from 
the  bud,  with  many  new  parts  ;  compared  with  the  ivy 
sprig  it  is  complex,  owing  to  the  number  of  new  parts 
that  have  grown  in  various  forms.  A  greater  amount 
of  nourishment  is  used  in  the  shoot  producing  leaves 
and  flowers  than  in  the  twig  that  grows  only  a  few  sim- 
ple leaves.  Any  increasing  amount  of  movement  in 
the  child  is  due  to  a  spreading  area  of  brain  action,  and 
indicates  an  expenditure  of  its  force. 

A  diminishing  number  of  parts  is  found  in  the  butter- 
cup flower  as  time  goes  on  ;  the  yellow  petals  fall,  then 
the  green  sepals  that  enveloped  the  bud  before  opening; 
the  little  stalked  stamens  fall  off,  leaving  only  the  parts 
in  the  centre  (carpels)  which  form  the  fruit  and  contain 
the  seeds  that  result  as  the  outcome  of  flowering ;  the 
parts  that  have  been  useful  disappear  and  leave  the 
perfected  fruit.  In  the  child  we  have  seen  examples 
of  much  movement  subsiding ;  when  there  has  been  a 
display  of  emotion  but  little  effect  in  the  brain  remains 
except  some  fatigue,  from  the  large  area  or  number  of 
parts  that  have  acted.  After  the  performance  of  a  well- 
regulated  exercise,  the  quieter  action  following   is   at- 


THE   SENSITIVE   PLANT  99 

tended  by  a  more  perfected  organisation  in  the  brain,  of 
use  in  future  action. 

Coordinate  action  is  seen  in  the  movements  that 
occur  in  the  leaf  of  the  sensitive  plant  {Mimosa  pudica). 
When  the  plant  is  in  its  natural  state  and  in  the  light 
the  leaflets  are  expanded  horizontally ;  but  after  a  touch 
they  become  folded,  and  at  length  the  main  stalk  is  de- 
pressed, so  that  the  entire  leaf  falls  down.  If  two  leaf- 
lets at  the  extremity  are  touched  they  fold  upwards,  and 
a  similar  movement  takes  place  down  the  stalk  to  its 
base,  and  then  spreads  to  adjacent  stalks,  each  succes- 
sive pair  of  leaflets  becoming  folded  in  order.  Thus  you 
see  coordinated  series  of  acts,  started  by  a  slight  touch 
but  passing  in  a  regular  order,  owing  to  the  structure 
of  the  leaf  in  which  the  cells  producing  movement 
are  specially  connected  with  one  another.  In  darkness 
a  similar  kind  of  movement  occurs,  with  the  result 
that  the  leaves  are  protected  from  being  chilled  at 
night. 

You  see  how  modes  of  growth  may  be  uniformly  re- 
peated, they  may  spread,  diminish,  or  be  controlled  by 
circumstances,  and  so  become  adapted  to  the  environ- 
ment ;  this  is  analogous  to  what  we  saw  in  movement, 
which  may  indicate  brain  action  recurring  in  the  same 
area,  spreading,  diminishing,  or  controlled  by  sight  or 
sound. 

You  must  ever  bear  in  mind  that  each  movement  in 
the  child  indicates  action  in   a  nerve  centre  ;  while  a 


100  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

series  of  movements  expresses  the  action  of  a  group 
or  series  of  centres,  so  we  can  trace  out  the  modes  of 
brain  action  and  their  characters  by  observing  classes 
of  movements. 

Further  illustrations  of  this  subject  I  have  given  in 
my  former  works  ^  with  catalogues  of  a  museum  de- 
monstrating some  of  the  principles  of  natural  history  as 
they  may  be  applied  to  the  study  of  the  brain  and  the 
body  of  the  child. 

Having  spoken  of  natural  history  as  illustrating  the 
principles  of  evolution,  I  will  give  a  few  illustrations  of 
reversion  to  earlier  conditions.  Some  seedlings  of  the 
Mimosa  piidica^  or  the  sensitive  plant,  were  potted  off 
into  different  earths  and  sands.  Those  planted  in  a 
soil  of  two  parts  of  decayed  vegetable  mould  to  one  of 
sand  grew  more  vigorously  both  in  height  and  foliage 
than  the  others ;  and  after  two  months  growth  they 
were  much  less  sensitive  than  others  planted  in  two- 
thirds  of  silver  sand  and  only  one-third  of  leaf  mould. 
One  or  two  plants  were  grown  entirely  in  silver  sand. 
These  showed  extreme  sensitiveness  to  the  slightest 
touch ;  even  a  breath  of  air,  or  the  slightest  jerk  of 
the  pot  in  which  they  grew,  caused  all  the  foliage  to 
shut  up.  It  also  appears  that  the  plants  may  become 
accustomed  to  a  weak  stimulus.  Thus,  Desfontaines 
carried  with  him  a  sensitive  plant  in  a  coach,  the  jolt- 
ing of  which  caused  the  leaves  to  close,  but  ere  long  the 

1  See  Author's  "  Anatomy  of  Movement,"  •*  Mental  Faculty." 


REVERSION  TO  CHILDISHNESS  10 1 

plant  became  accustomed  to  the  motion  and  the  leaves 
expanded.^ 

Here  are  facts  worth  remembering.  They  may  help 
to  show  you  how  best  to  care  for  the  bodies  and  brains 
of  children  who  are  overmobile  and  sensitive  —  they 
must  be  properly  fed,  and  under  a  wise  training  they 
may  become  accustomed  to  the  trials  and  joltings  of 
daily  life. 

Reversion  to  childish  modes  of  action  is  not  uncom- 
mon ;  these  may  be  seen  in  the  attitudes  and  gestures 
of  the  body,  such  as  hanging  the  head  as  if  too  heavy 
to  support,  in  place  of  keeping  it  erect ;  bent  knees  and 
elbows  in  listless  attitude  like  the  position  of  the  limbs 
of  the  infant  (see  Chapter  11. ,  p.  24),  also  in  the  closed 
hands  in  place  of  fingers  open  and  ready  for  action. 
Childish  reversion  is  seen  in  spontaneity,  not  impres- 
sionable, but  tending  to  spread,  especially  when  accom- 
panying indications  of  lowered  nutrition.  This  is 
characteristic  of  exhausted  and  nervous  children,  also 
of  those  untrained  to  self-control  and  regulated  habits. 

I  have  referred  very  briefly  to  some  facts  in  natural 
history  illustrating  principles  to  be  used  in  studying  the 
evolution  of  brain  power,  and  now  proceed  to  speak  of 
changes  which  appear  to  take  place  among  the  nerve 
centres  in  the  development  of  mental  processes,  so  that 
you  may  acquire  some  understanding  as  to  what  occurs 
in  the  heads  of  the  children. 

1  Balfour,  "Class  Book  of  Botany,"  1871,  p.  496. 


102  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

We  have  seen  that  spontaneity  may  be  temporarily 
arrested  and  then  replaced  by  a  new  coordinated  action  ; 
the  child  when  spoken  to  stops  fidgeting,  thinks,  and 
then  does  as  directed.  (See  Chapter  IL,  pp.  36,  39.) 
We  cannot  admit  in  physiology  that  this  is  produced 
by  the  will  or  the  mind,  but  must  infer  that  it  indicates 
an  arrangement  among  the  brain  centres,  through  which 
they  become  united  by  nerve  paths.  The  brain  centres, 
though  they  can  act  separately,  may  become  united  by 
the  formation  of  nerve  paths  between  them  so  as  to 
be  readily  called  into  coaction,  corresponding  to  mental 
action  or  its  expression ;  larger  groups  may  be  so  con- 
nected as  to  act  in  unison,  or  in  a  series  one  after  the 
other  in  an  established  order  (coordinated  action). 
Thus  the  pupil  repeats  the  words  of  the  lesson  he  has 
learned.  The  action  of  a  single  centre,  or  of  a  group 
arranged  as  a  series,  may  be  started  by  a  slight  impres- 
sion,—  the  sight  of  an  object  or  a  gesture,  or  the  sound 
of  a  word  of  direction.     (See  Training,  Chapter  VII., 

P-  143.) 

Let  me  refer  to  the  analogy  between  the  brain 
with  its  parts  or  nerve  centres,  and  the  regiment  of 
soldiers  on  review.  The  men  have  previously  been 
drilled  in  squads,  and  trained  to  act  together  as  one 
group ;  many  such  groups  move  separately  when  the 
formation  of  the  company  changes.  The  squad  cor- 
responds, in  our  analogy,  to  a  group  of  nerve  cells 
united  by  nerve  paths,  resulting  from   repeatedly  act- 


METAPHYSICS  AND   PSYCHOLOGY  1 03 

ing  together.  The  command  of  the  colonel  commu- 
nicated to  the  officer  of  one  squad  is  passed  on  to 
the  rest,  or  given  to  each  separately,  by  an  aide-de- 
camp, so  that  two  or  more  squads  act  together,  or 
they  may  fire  alternately. 

Regimental  formations  may  be  prepared  without 
firing,  or  a  spreading  line  of  fire  may  be  ordered. 
The  nerve  centres  may  be  arranged  by  new  nerve 
paths,  while  the  child  is  listening  attentively.  Ex- 
pression comes  later,  when  he  repeats  what  he  has 
been  taught.  In  battle,  if  panic  or  loss  of  the 
officers  of  the  army  dissolves  the  organisation,  e?ch 
man  acts  alone  and  spontaneously,  and  disorder  or  con- 
fusion result. 

The  metaphysical  side  of  psychology  I  must  leave 
alone,  while  directing  your  attention  to  evidence  ob- 
tained by  scientific  observation  of  the  facts  expres- 
ing  the  modes  of  brain  action  essential  to  thought 
and  its  expression.^ 

All  expression  of  mental  action  is  by  movement. 
We  do  not  know  in  what  way  consciousness  and 
mind  are  connected  with  the  brain  and  body;  still  it 
is  true  that  all  mental  action  in  one  person  is  ex- 
pressed to  another  only  by  some  form  of  movement. 
Thus,  we  express  our  thoughts  in  the  movements  of 
articulation,  in  speech,  by  facial  expression  and  gesture, 

1  References  6,  14;  and  Journal  of  Mental  Science,  London,  April, 
1889. 


104  "^^^  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

or  by  the  written  words  produced  by  movements  of 
the  fingers  as  guided  by  the  brain.  In  each  case  it 
is  the  nerve-muscular  mechanism  that  indicates  or  ex- 
presses the  thoughts  arising  in  the  mind;  it  is  the 
brain  centres,  acting  on  the  muscles  of  the  body  and 
limbs,  that  convey  to  another  person  the  thinkings 
that  occur.  Movements  produced  by  the  muscles  are 
thus  indices  of  what  goes  on  among  the  brain  cen- 
tres that  produce  them ;  still,  the  processes  of  think- 
ing can  go  on  in  the  brain  without  being  expressed.^ 
The  hands  of  a  clock  indicate  the  time  as  we  see 
them  move;  the  clockworks  produce  the  movements, 
and  these  will  go  on  just  as  well  if  the  hands  are 
removed,  only  we  cannot  read  the  time  then ;  it  is 
the  clockworks  that  keep  the  time,  and  the  hands 
that  express  it  visibly.  We  mostly  study  our  clocks 
by  observing  the  movements  of  the  hands,  but  the 
clockmaker  is  able  to  look  at  and  understand  the 
works. 

In  employing  scientific  methods  for  studying  men- 
tal action,  as  it  occurs  in  the  brain,  we  observe  move- 
ments and  class  them  as  already  explained  (see 
Chapter  IV.,  75),  and  describe  them ;  then,  just  as  in 
other  scientific  research,  we  proceed  to  draw  infer- 
ences from  observations,  and  formulate  a  working 
hypothesis  as  to  modes  of  mental  action  in  the 
brain. 

^  See  Proceedings  of  Congress  of  Education^  Chicago.     Reference  34. 


NERVE  MECHANISM   FOR  THOUGHT  105 

It  is  probable  that  the  nerve  mechanism  for  thought 
is  the  highest  set  of  nerve  centres  in  the  brain ;  these 
are  connected  in  structure  with  the  lower  centres,  and 
finally  with  the  muscles  that  produce  the  movements 
of  the  limbs  and  parts  of  the  body.  Thus  the  nerve- 
muscular  system  produces  action,  such  as  is  commonly 
called  voluntary.  I  desire  to  explain  the  corelation 
of  mental  action  with  other  natural  processes,  and  to 
trace  out  the  effects  of  conditions  around  the  child  in  so 
far  as  concerns  us  in  dealing  with  training  and  educa- 
tion —  not  as  a  means  of  explaining  what  mind  con- 
sists of,  which  we  do  not  know.  The  study  of  mental 
action  in  the  brain  thus  becomes  a  study  of  physiologi- 
cal processes ;  hence,  I  employ  methods  similar  to  those 
used  in  observing  specimens  in  natural  history  show- 
ing growth  and  movement. ^ 

We  have  seen  in  the  evolution  of  the  infant  that  a 
pause  in  spontaneous  movement  after  an  impression  by 
light  or  sound  may  be  followed  by  a  new  coordinated 
act.  We  infer  that  during  the  pause  or  inhibition  of 
movement,  the  brain  centres  are  united  by  temporary 
nerve  paths,  and  thus  prepared  to  act  in  a  series  pro- 
ducing the  action  seen.  This  is  the  sort  of  action 
occurring  in  the  brain  of  the  pupil  during  quiet  atten- 
tion, in  looking  or  listening,  rather  should  I  say  the 
period  of  orderly  preparation  of  nerve  cells  by  the  light 
or  sound.     (See  Chapter  III.,  p.  69.) 

1  References  5,  14;  Journal  of  Mental  Science^  April,  1889. 


I06  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

In  training  the  pupil  to  imitate  your  pronunciation  of 
a  word  you  make  him  look  at  you  ;  the  child  then 
makes  movements  similar  to  those  of  your  lips  and 
face. 

We  infer  that,  as  the  result  of  the  impression  by  sight, 
the  same  centres  that  are  active  with  you  are  acting  in 
his  brain.  Further,  after  repeating  the  word  a  few 
times,  if  the  child  can  say  it  without  guidance,  we  infer 
that  the  brain  centres  for  that  word  have  become  con- 
nected by  nerve  paths,  so  that  the  syllables  are  pro- 
nounced and  the  impression  in  the  brain  is  retained. 
Analogous  brain  organisation  is  built  up  by  physical 
exercises  in  imitation  of  the  teacher,  thus  making  the 
brain  grow  apt  for  connected  mental  action.  In  such 
training,  action  becomes  more  exact  by  practice,  then 
quicker ;  finally  it  can  be  produced  by  the  child  without 
your  guidance,  simply  on  directing  the  pupil  to  do  so. 
We  do  not  see  this  coordination  or  brain  evolution  in 
the  very  young  infant,  in  the  imbecile,  or  in  the  sick 
child.i 

From  the  study  of  numerous  observations  and  infer- 
ences drawn  from  many  and  varied  facts,  I  was  led  to 
conclude  that  a  thought,  or  mental  act  as  it  occurs  in 
the  brain,  is  there  represented  by  the  activity  of  a  cer- 
tain group  of  nerve  cells  (diatactic  union)  ^  —  the  brain 
centres  forming  the  group  acting  in  a  definite  order  as 

1  References  29,  52. 

2  See  "  Mental  Faculty,"  Chapter  III. 


NERVE  PATHS   IN  THE  BRAIN  IO7 

determined  by  the  nerve  paths  formed  between  them  by 
sensory  impressions. 

It  is  here  suggested  that  a  mental  act  is  due  to  the 
function  of  certain  brain  cells,  temporarily  connected 
for  the  action ;  on  another  occasion  different  arrange- 
ments may  be  formed  among  the  same  nerve  cells,  and 
a  different  kind  of  mental  act  result.  Thus  the  brain 
cells  become  temporarily  connected  by  nerve  paths,  lead- 
ing from  one  to  another,  which  are  formed  by  impres- 
sions received  in  the  brain  through  the  senses  and  by 
muscle  sense  (see  Chapter  II.,  37).  The  arrangement 
of  the  brain  cells  (diatactic  action)  for  this  kind  of 
concerted  action  occurs  during  the  "  pause  "  or  period 
of  inhibition  of  movements,  to  which  I  have  often  re- 
ferred, as  corresponding  to  attention  or  the  period  of 
thinking.  Training  as  described  in  Chapter  VII.  makes 
the  brain  centres  apt  for  this  kind  of  action. 

In  illustration  let  me  again  refer  to  the  analogy  of 
brain  action  and  the  organisation  in  an  army.  In  order 
to  achieve  a  certain  object  the  colonel  orders  a  com- 
pany of  men  to  make  a  particular  movement  in  concert ; 
on  another  occasion  the  same  men  may  be  arranged  in 
different  divisions  to  execute  a  further  purpose. 

In  a  city  possessed  of  a  good  telephonic  system, 
six  merchants  may  be  placed  in  communication  by 
an  arrangement  of  the  electrical  wires;  at  another 
time  five  bankers  may  consult  and  act  together,  if 
the    arrangement    of    the   wires    is    adapted    by   the 


I08  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

superintendent  of  telephones  who  receives  an  order 
to  do  so.  The  city  is  then  roughly  analogous  to  the 
brain.  The  telephones  represent  brain  centres,  the 
order  given  to  the  superintendent  corresponds  to  sen- 
sory impressions.  These  orders  result  in  certain  tele- 
phones being  temporarily  connected  by  electrical  wires 
which  bring  them  into  communication;  these  wires 
are  analogous  to  the  nerve  paths  formed  between  the 
brain  centres.  The  nerve  centres,  by  the  formation 
of  nerve  paths,  are  prepared  to  act  in  unison  and  in 
harmony  with  the  impression  that  controls  them. 

In  considering  mental  acts  as  represented  by  the 
corresponding  physiological  action  of  brain  centres, 
we  study  what  may  be  inferred  to  occur  in  the 
brain  from  visible  expression  in  the  child.  Coordi- 
nated movement  indicates  nerve  centres  acting  in  a 
certain  order  under  control ;  if  this  is  repeated  with- 
out help  or  guidance,  we  infer  that  training  has 
already  established  some  new  nerve  paths  in  the  brain. 

It  was  desirable  in  Chapter  III.  to  describe  the 
general  characters  of  brain  actions  separately ;  these, 
however,  often  occur  together  in  varying  degree  un- 
der different  circumstances,  and  thus  become  com- 
ponents of  a  mode  of  brain  action  as  seen  in  a 
child ;  a   few  examples  will  illustrate  this. 

Impressionability  of  the  brain  is  shown  in  various 
ways,  sometimes  by  arresting  action,  or  in  a  higher 
form  by  guiding  it. 


BOYS   IN  THE  PLAYGROUND  IO9 

Impressionability  to  the  sound  of  the  school  bell 
is  seen  together  with  coordinated  action,  as  the  boys 
put  their  tops  into  their  pockets  and  run  indoors. 
Some  of  the  boys,  however,  look  up  to  see  if  the 
master  is  coming,  and  then  go  on  with  their  play ; 
here  the  first  impression  is  followed  by  action,  while 
the  second  impression  removes  the  stimulus  of  the 
first.  Other  boys  get  off  to  a  corner  of  the  play- 
ground where  they  may  not  be  seen.  This  is  a  kind 
of  coordinated  action  that  should  not  take  place. 
Some  children  simply  stand  still  and  do  nothing 
when  they  hear  the  bell;  the  impression  produces 
inhibition  only.  A  deaf  boy  continues  to  spin  his 
top  as  before;  he  does  not  hear  the  bell.  One  boy 
makes  grimaces,  stamps  on  the  ground,  throws  down 
his  top,  picks  it  up  again,  drops  it  into  his  pocket, 
and  finally  goes  into  school ;  the  impression  by  sound 
leads  to  extra  movements  with  a  spreading  area  of 
brain  activity  followed  by  coordinated  action. 

Inhibition  of  movements  may  occur  with  or  without 
attention.  A  pupil  is  looking  all  over  the  room,  both 
his  hands  and  fingers  moving  also.  Teacher  says, 
"  Look  at  this  flower  as  I  show  its  parts,  and  name 
them."  His  eyes  are  fixed  on  the  specimen  and  his 
movements  stop,  there  is  inhibition  of  movement  for 
the  time ;  we  infer  that  his  brain  action  was  arrested 
only  as  to  movement  and  not  for  mental  process, 
because  he  can  subsequently  repeat  the  names  of  the 


no  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

parts  of  the  flower  as  taught;  inhibition  of  move- 
ment accompanied  an  act  of  attention.  Another 
child,  when  told  to  look  at  the  specimen,  looks  at 
the  teacher  only,  and  keeps  still;  afterwards  he  can 
give  no  answer.  His  impressionability  is  shown  by 
inhibition  of  spontaneous  movements,  but  his  brain 
centres  were  not  controlled  by  the  teaching  given, 
and  no  mental  action  follows.  Another  pupil  when 
told  to  examine  a  flower  looks  at  it  quietly  for  a 
moment,  thinking  what  to  do,  then  separates  and 
arranges  its  parts.  Temporary  inhibition  leads  to  co- 
ordinated action. 

The  pupil,  if  sufficiently  educated,  when  he  has 
arranged  his  specimen  on  a  card,  will  proceed  to 
write  the  names  of  each  part  and  compare  them. 
This  shows  quiet  coordinated  action  with  retentive- 
ness  of  names  and  their  association  with  objects ; 
sight  of  his  specimen  leads  to  mental  comparisons 
and  description. 

Co"6rdinated  action  produced  through  the  senses  in 
training  a  child  possessed  of  the  faculty  of  memory 
or  retentiveness  leads  to  the  establishment  of  the 
nerve  arrangements  in  his  brain  for  many  modes  of 
complex  action.  Practice  makes  him  more  apt  in  per- 
forming difficult  exercises,  whether  they  be  in  move- 
ment or  mental  in  character. 

A  child  hears  his  father's  footstep  and  runs  to 
meet   him,    smiling,     gesticulating,    and     making   glad 


COORDINATION  IN  GAMES  III 

sounds ;  this  shows  coordinated  action  with  extra 
movements.  Another  man's  footstep  does  not  pro- 
duce the  same  result ;  we  infer  that  the  child  knows 
the  sound  of  his  father's  walk  :  on  many  previous 
occasions  that  particular  sound  has  been  heard,  and 
such  impressions  have  been  retained.  Our  know- 
ledge enables  us  to  infer  that  this  particular  sound 
has  produced  nerve  paths  in  his  brain,  associating  it 
with  many  previous  impressions.  Vocal  impressions 
may  produce  analogous  results.  It  is  seen  in  this 
example  that  extra  movements  may  accompany  co- 
ordinated action ;  usually,  however,  coordination  ne- 
cessitates some  diminution  of  spontaneity.  Thus,  a 
young  child  out  for  a  walk  in  the  fields  runs  here 
and  there,  shouts,  and  moves  his  arms  much,  occasion- 
ally stopping  at  sight  of  a  flower  to  pick  it.  When 
you  call  him,  he  is  quieter  and  runs  to  you. 

Inhibition,  coordinated  action,  and  retentiveness  are 
cultivated  by  practice.  In  the  cricket  field  the  boys 
stand  straight  and  motionless,  ready  for  fielding ;  the 
bowler,  ready  with  his  ball ;  the  batsman,  prepared 
to  hit  and  run.  Action  in  the  batsman  is  regulated 
by  sight  of  the  flying  ball,  and  as  he  runs,  by  the 
men  fielding.  The  fielders  are  controlled  in  action 
by  the  sight  of  one  another,  and  of  the  ball.  Good 
play  is  only  gained  by  practice. 

Compound  brain  action,  or  preparation  to  perform  a 
certain  set  of  actions  one  after  another  in  due  order, 


112  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

is  only  evolved  gradually  after  much  training;  cul- 
ture in  various  kinds  of  coordinated  action  at  length 
renders  the  brain  apt  for  such  acquired  functions. 
As  an  illustration,  give  the  child  two  beans,  telling 
him  to  measure  and  compare  them.  He  takes  one 
and  holds  it  lengthways  between  his  finger  and 
thumb,  looking  at  it  from  end  to  end.  Then  he 
holds  it  flatways  and  looks  at  its  breadth ;  finally  he 
holds  it  from  side  to  side.  Again,  he  takes  two 
beans,  one  between  the  finger  and  thumb  of  either 
hand,  then  places  them  across  one  another  and  looks 
at  them.  At  last  he  says,  the  bean  is  longer  than  it 
is  broad,  and  the  breadth  greater  than  the  thickness. 
Impressions  derived  from  previous  teaching  arise  to 
activity  in  his  brain  in  due  order,  they  interact  on 
one  another,  leading  to  expression  in  action  and  words. 
As  an  illustration  of  more  advanced  mental  power 
and  memory,  dependent  on  retentiveness  of  modes  of 
compound  brain  action,  let  me  give  you  one  more 
example :  A  boy  is  told  to  draw  a  map  of  the 
United  States ;  he  proceeds  quietly  to  rule  on  the 
paper  the  lines  of  latitude  and  longitude ;  then  draws 
in  the  boundary  lines,  the  rivers,  and  marks  the 
towns,  writing  in  their  names.  As  you  watch  him 
you  see  a  long  series  of  complex  movements  of  his 
hand  and  fingers,  which  result  in  a  sketch  of  the 
map  asked  for.  The  boy's  brain  has  been  trained  to 
receive   impressions    and    retain   them    in   order,   with 


BRAIN   RETENTIVENESS   AND   MEMORY  113 

nerve  paths  among  the  groups  of  nerve  cells,  —  analo- 
gous to  the  wires  between  the  telephones,  —  so  that 
when  directed  to  draw  the  map  he  proceeds  to  do  so 
from  memory. 

Retentiveness  of  brain  impressions  and  their  asso- 
ciation gives  the  power  of  memory  as  the  mental 
faculties  are  evolved.  A  child  who  cuts  his  finger 
with  a  knife  feels  the  pain,  he  sees  the  blood  and 
the  knife ;  another  time  he  avoids  the  knife.  The 
boy  bitten  by  a  dog  is  afterwards  frightened  at  the 
sight  of  a  dog.  A  child  who  has  been  run  over  and 
hurt  shows  signs  of  fear  when  crossing  a  crowded 
road  as  long  as  the  brain  impression  produced  by 
the  accident  remains.  Thus  in  the  progress  of  life 
a  child  learns  and  retains  much  from  his  experience. 

Compound  brain  action  is  a  most  interesting  process 
in  the  evolution  of  the  child  (see  Chapter  II.,  p.  39). 
When  he  does  as  you  tell  him  and  repeats  a  lesson 
from  memory  it  is  possible  to  trace  what  occurs ;  the 
centres  corresponding  to  each  word  having  been  im- 
pressed previously  in  a  certain  order,  we  infer  that 
they  have  been  connected  by  nerve  paths,  and  are 
reactive  in  expression  one  after  another.  The  lesson 
may  have  been  learned  and  then  forgotten,  or  the  im- 
press of  a  word  here  and  there  in  the  series  may 
have  faded ;  if  you  supply  this,  he  goes  on  again  to  the 
end.  Of  course,  this  process  as  described  is  merely 
repetition  without  any  added  brain  action  for  thought. 


114  "^^^  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

I  have  spoken  of  impressions  in  the  brain  corre- 
sponding to  movements  and  words ;  it  is  generally  ac- 
cepted that  words  may  correspond  to  (or  be  coupled 
with)  thoughts,  while  the  thoughts  are  expressed  by 
words. 

Words  are  produced  in  writing  or  speaking  by  fine 
and  coordinated  movements  of  the  fingers,  or  the 
mouth  and  tongue,  etc.  Like  all  other  movements, 
speech  can  be  taught ;  the  impression  of  a  sound  on 
a  child's  brain  may  form  a  centre  for  the  word 
among  the  nerve  cells  and  a  meaning  may  afterwards 
grow  up  around  it.  You  may  teach  the  word,  give 
an  impression,  and  couple  the  word  and  sensory  im- 
pression. You  may  teach  the  word  "heavy,"  then 
produce  tension  on  the  muscles  of  the  hand  by 
weights,  and,  again,  couple  the  term  "  heavy "  with 
the  feeling  of  weight. 

I  believe  that  a  thought  corresponds  in  the  brain 
to  the  formation  of  a  group  of  nerve  cells  by  nerve 
paths  proceeding  between  them,  thus  constructing  a 
new  nerve  centre  out  of,  or  among,  existing  nerve 
cells.  In  analogy  to  the  army,  it  is  as  though  the 
healthy,  active  soldiers  of  the  regiment  were  stand- 
ing at  ease ;  the  command  of  the  officer  of  the  first 
squad  calls  them  to  attention  ;  it  inhibits  their  talk- 
ing and  laughing,  they  make  their  proper  formation ; 
they  are  now  ready  to  act  in  unison,  to  make  a  new 
formation,   or    respond    to   command.      The   word   of 


METHODICAL  TRAINING  II5 

command  controls  them  ;  they  may  remain  quiescent 
or  express  their  force  in  firing  (see  Voluntary  Action, 
Chapter  X.,  p.  199). 

Order  and  method  in  training  and  teaching  aids  evo- 
lution of  the  brain  in  the  child  ;  disconnected  teaching 
and  verbal  instruction  without  previous  preparation 
leads  to  mental  confusion  and  weakness.  It  is  not  in 
accordance  with  good  method  to  teach  addition  till  the 
child  can  count  objects,  or  proportion  before  he  can 
appreciate  the  relative  degree  of  his  impressions.  Com- 
parison cannot  be  made  without  separation  or  abstraction 
of  the  impressions  to  be  contrasted  from  the  mass  of 
impressions  received ;  and  this  mental  process  is  ac- 
quired only  after  methodical  training.  The  pupil  who 
has  examined  peas  and  beans  must  learn  to  separate 
his  impressions  of  weight  from  those  of  colour,  or  of 
dimensions,  before  making  comparisons  and  giving  de- 
scriptions. He  will  then  be  able  to  compare  the  peas 
and  beans  as  to  their  colour  and  their  weight  respec- 
tively ;  while  he  may  proceed  to  compare  the  dimen- 
sions of  the  bean. 

The  child  grows  and  the  brain  grows  during  school 
days,  so  that  nearly  the  full  weight  of  brain  is  attained 
by  twenty  years  of  age.  The  brain  organisation  and 
condition  need  training  during  this  period ;  if  educa- 
tion be  neglected,  as  the  bulk  of  brain  increases  some 
parts  are  left  incoordinated  and  too  ready  for  the  dis- 
play of  nerve  storms,  emotion,  and  hysteria. 


Il6  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

It  is  true  that  the  surroundings  of  nature  in  the  coun- 
try, and  occupations  in  social  life  without  artificial  edu- 
cation for  the  children,  may  produce  fair  mental  ability; 
but  this  is  at  least  leaving  much  to  chance  circum- 
stances. To  let  the  child's  brain  grow  without  bringing 
it  under  control  is  analogous  to  enlisting  a  number  of 
men  untrained  in  military  discipline,  then  calling  them 
an  army,  and  expecting  them  to  confront  the  dangers 
of  battle  with  success. 


CHAPTER  VI 

Physical  Care  of  the  Child  ;  Hygiene  and  Feeding 

A  BODY  healthy  in  its  organs  and  parts,  including,  of 
course,  the  brain,  is  essential  to  the  healthiness  of  the 
life  of  the  child,  and  requires  constant  thoughtful  atten- 
tion at  each  stage  and  in  the  daily  hours  of  education. 
It  may  be  convenient  to  speak  of  bodily  health  and 
brain  healthiness  separately;  but  they  do  not  stand 
apart,  each  reacts  on  the  other.  The  brain  is  depend- 
ent upon  the  body  and  its  organs  for  a  good  supply  of 
nourishing,  pure  blood ;  the  brain  acts  upon  all  parts  of 
the  body,  the  heart  and  the  organs  of  breathing  and 
of  digestion. 

Thus  delicate  children  need  brain  training  adapted  to 
their  individualities,  not  only  that  they  may  have  well- 
formed  and  balanced  minds,  but  also,  in  order  that  the 
brain  may  be  cultivated  as  far  as  possible,  to  act  regu- 
larly in  controlling  the  bodily  health.^  Loafing  is  not 
good  for  either  brain  or  body ;  untrained  emotional  dis- 
turbance upsets  digestion ;  habitual  slowness  of  action 
leaves  the  circulation  sluggish ;  mental  excitement  dis- 
turbs many  of  the  organs.     The  training  of  a  delicate 

^  References  27,  28. 
117 


Il8  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

child  should  not  be  neglected,  but  adapted  to  the  special 
requirements  of  the  case. 

Let  me  explain  a  general  principle  in  physiology  as 
to  the  control  exercised  by  the  organs  of  the  body  upon 
one  another.  Physical  exercise  quickens  the  heart's 
action,  thus  increasing  the  circulation  in  the  brain  and 
promoting  its  healthy  activity.  The  sudden  call  to  re- 
peat a  lesson  in  class  may  excite  the  brain  and  produce 
such  disturbed  action  of  the  heart  as  to  quicken  the 
pulse  beats  and  interfere  with  the  brain  circulation, 
leading  to  mental  confusion.  Again,  words  of  reproof 
from  the  teacher  may  produce  a  state  of  mental  excite- 
ment, while  this  brain  disturbance  (spreading  action) 
excites  the  heart  and  so  disturbs  the  circulation ;  then 
sleeplessness  at  night  may  follow.  The  heart  acts  on 
the  brain,  and  the  brain  reacts  upon  the  working  of  the 
heart. 

It  is  said  the  healthy  body  helps  to  make  a 
healthy  brain ;  it  is  also  true  that  a  well-regulated 
brain  helps  to  keep  the  rest  of  the  body  in  good 
health.  Healthy  lungs  and  good  breathing  afford  a 
supply  of  pure  blood  to  the  brain.  Emotion  and  ex- 
citement disturb  breathing ;  the  movements  of  the 
chest  become  quick  but  shallow,  and  the  circulation 
is  impeded ;  careful  training  may  render  the  child 
less  emotional,  and  less  liable  to  this  cause  of  brain 
disturbance.  Food  and  a  good  digestion  are  neces- 
sary to  produce  a  proper  quality  of   the  blood  ;  regu- 


THE  BRAIN  AND  DIGESTION  Iig 

lated  control  of  the  brain  promotes  good  digestion. 
Where  you  have  seen  that  the  child's  school  work 
is  unsatisfactory  as  the  result  of  some  form  of  indi- 
gestion, it  is  useful  to  remember  that  good  digestion 
is  promoted  by  a  proper  mental  control  of  the  brain, 
regulated  in  all  good  habits.  Nervous  dyspepsia,  as 
it  is  often  called,  may  sometimes  be  prevented  or  re- 
moved by  regulation  of  the  occupations  and  the  work 
of  the  day,  together  with  punctuality  as  to  the  hours 
of  sleep. 

These  facts  are  true ;  they  may  seem  paradoxical ;  I 
speak  of  them  here  because  I  think  you  should  un- 
derstand every  side  of  this  question  in  all  instances, 
as  bearing  on  the  responsible  care  of  the  child's  well- 
being  in  every  aspect  of  the  case. 

The  child  may  be  cross  and  peevish  as  the  result 
of  illness,  or  want  of  food  and  rest.  He  may  be 
out  of  health  with  low  power  of  digestion  and  want 
of  proper  sleep,  resulting  from  lack  of  occupation 
and  interests,  together  with  habits  of  getting  what- 
ever he  wants  and  eating  whatever  he  fancies  ;  such 
bad  training  necessarily  leads  to  ill  health  and  peevish- 
ness. 

When  a  child  is  fidgety  and  shows  signs  of  fatigue, 
it  is  desirable  to  try  and  find  out  the  true  cause. 
Weariness  from  real  work  may  thus  lead  to  fidgeti- 
ness ;  on  the  other  hand,  exhaustion  may  result  from 
spontaneous,    or  self-originated,  uncontrolled,  thinking 


120  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

and  imagining,  such  as  is  not  uncommon  among 
lonely  children  at  home.  In  some  cases  this  cause 
of  weariness  and  fatigue  may  be  removed  by  wisely 
regulated  school  training  and  occupation  in  system- 
atic habits  of  work.  The  child  will  not  eat  his  meals, 
is  talkative,  and  looks  at  everything  but  his  food ; 
showing  overmobiHty  and  the  signs  of  nervousness, 
while  lacking  in  healthy  strength  and  energy  through 
insufficient  nourishment.  When  possible  make  him 
eat,  even  if  his  dinner  occupies  an  hour  of  your 
time.  Some  children  do  not  go  to  bed  at  their 
proper  time,  because  they  do  not  sleep ;  that  is  bad 
management,  and  often  the  child  is  too  tired  to  sleep 
well  the  next  night. 

Thus,  conditions  of  the  body  act  on  the  brain, 
and  the  brain  reacts  on  the  general  healthiness  and 
nutrition  of  the  child.  The  points  here  touched  upon 
are  sometimes  neglected,  thus  leading  to  confusion  in 
management ;  while  in  some  instances  the  child  is 
expected  to  correct  his  own  faults,  although  he  has 
not  been  controlled  by  those  whose  duty  it  is  to  train 
him  and  to  try  to  understand  his  difficulties  and  his 
character.  The  care  of  the  child's  body  is  our  busi- 
ness ;  he  needs  at  first  to  be  trained  by  what  is  done  for 
him,  and  taught  good  habits, —  eating  properly  what  is 
given  to  him,  keeping  his  hands  clean,  changing  boots 
when  wet,  and  many  other  necessary  habits  in  personal 
hygiene  which  he  can  learn  to  do  for  himself.     Except 


CLOTHING  AND   DRESS  121 

in  such  duties  and  habits,  the  less  the  child  is  con- 
scious of  his  own  body  the  better,  especially  as  to 
pains,  appetite,  irritability  of  the  skin  and  throat,  or 
dress,  etc. ;  what  he  sees  and  hears  should  occupy  his 
attention  rather  than  his  own  sensations. 

Clothing  should  be  adapted  so  as  not  to  interfere 
with  free  movements  of  the  limbs  and  the  chest, 
avoiding  either  a  collar  that  rubs  the  neck,  or  a 
band  that  constricts  the  waist.  Woollen  garments  next 
to  the  skin  are  much  to  be  preferred,  and  help  to 
prevent  catarrhs  in  winter;  it  is  equally  important 
that  they  should  be  made  high  at  the  neck,  with  the 
object  of  keeping  a  uniform  layer  of  air  around  the 
body  and  limbs.  Boots  should  allow  movements  of 
the  toes,  which  if  unconfined  tend  to  healthy  spon- 
taneous movements  such  as  are  seen  in  the  infant, 
but  too  little  in  the  feet  of  adults;  care  should  also 
be  taken  that  boots  do  not  press  on  the  instep,  which 
may  lead  to  "flat  foot"  and  loss  of  all  gracefulness 
in  walking,  and  even  lameness  in  after  years.  Dress, 
while  suited  to  the  family  of  which  the  child  is  a 
member,  should  not  be  such  as  to  attract  the  atten- 
tion of  the  child  or  of  others.  Perhaps  a  school  cap 
or  badge  helps  to  promote  a  feeling  of  comradeship 
as  belonging  to  a  corporate  body,  whose  honour  must 
be  maintained  by  proper  conduct  outside  the  school. 
Dress  may  be  well  arranged  without  being  costly, 
and   should   be   adapted   to   its   uses;    while   boys,   in 


122  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

particular,  need  to  be  encouraged  to  keep  their 
clothes  clean. 

One  important  consideration  in  school  management 
must  be  a  time  table,  and  a  plan  of  the  day's  oc- 
cupations, arranged  for  each  class  to  some  extent 
according  to  the  ages  of  the  pupils.  We  have  to 
keep  the  child  growing  in  body  and  brain  by  feed- 
ing and  culture ;  work,  play,  and  sleep  have  to 
be  arranged  for,  and  fill  up  a  large  portion  of 
the  curriculum,  each  item  of  which  bears  on  the 
others.  Sleep  concerns  the  health  of  both  body  and 
brain.  Sleeping  rooms  should  be  well  aired  during 
the  day,  and  ventilated  at  night  by  a  partially 
opened  window ;  a  night  passed  in  a  close  atmos- 
phere poisons  the  lungs  and  the  brain,  becoming  a 
fertile  source  of  fatigue,  headaches,  ill  health,  and 
anaemia.  (See  Chapter  I.,  p.  5.)  Dark  blinds  aid  sleep ; 
the  drawing  up  of  these  in  the  morning  is  a  better 
manner  of  awakening  the  child  than  knocking  at  the 
door  or  calling  him ;  light  gradually  recalls  the  brain 
to  its  daily  activities. 

As  you  look  at  a  child  in  sleep,  while  as  yet  there  is 
no  light  shining  on  him,  and  no  sounds  impressing 
hearing,  the  body  is  motionless  except  for  the  move- 
ments of  breathing.  The  brain  centres  are  quietly  and 
uniformly  nourished  by  the  blood  circulating  among 
them.  As  sounds  begin  in  the  house  some  movements 
may   occur    during   sleep,   showing    that   some   nerve 


SLEEP  AND   AWAKING  12$ 

centres  are  being  stimulated.  When  light  is  admitted 
at  the  window,  the  eyehds  are  first  screwed  together, 
then  opened ;  stretching  movements  are  seen,  the  limbs 
are  moved,  the  child  sits  up  and  begins  to  talk  ;  the 
whole  brain  is  now  awake  and  ready  for  the  activities 
of  the  day.  A  gradual  method  of  arousing  from  sleep 
is  better  than  a  sudden  noise ;  the  brain  should  be  al- 
lowed a  few  minutes  for  recovering  its  full  activity  and 
for  restoration  of  the  full  circulation  of  blood  which  this 
necessitates.  With  children  who  are  at  all  delicate  the 
process  of  arousing  should  be  gradual,  let  the  child  sit 
up  in  bed  and  get  fully  awake  before  jumping  out;  to 
startle  a  child  on  awaking  sometimes  does  harm.  A 
cold  bath  assures  full  wakefulness ;  it  helps  to  stimulate 
the  breathing  and  establish  a  good  circulation. 

It  is  hardly  possible  to  say  how  many  hours  sleep  an 
individual  child  requires,  but  the  method  of  sleeping 
should  be  looked  to.  Means  should  be  taken  to  ascer- 
tain whether  the  child  soon  falls  asleep ;  cold  feet  delay 
rest,  a  bed  too  warmly  clothed  may  lead  to  restlessness, 
thinking  and  imagining  may  keep  off  sleep.  For  the 
habitually  bad  sleeper  a  glass  of  milk  and  a  biscuit  may 
be  provided. 

The  following  table  drawn  up  by  Dr.  Clement  Dukes  ^ 
expresses  his  experience  as  to  the  amount  of  sleep  re- 
quired by  children :  — 

1  "  Remedies  of  the  Needless  Injury  to  Children."  Messrs.  Rivington, 
London. 


124  "^^^  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

As  Work  and  Sleep  should  be  allotted 


Age. 


Pupils  between 


Children  between    5-6 
a  «         6-7 

«  «         7-8 

8-9 

8-10 

lO-II 

11-12 
12-14 
14-15 
15-17 
17-19 


Hours  of  Work 
per  Week. 


6 

9 
12 

IS 

20 

25 

30 

35 
40 

45 
50 


Hours  of  Sleep 
per  Night. 


I3i 
13 

I2i 
12 

Hi 
II 

lOi 

10 

9i 

9 

8i 


This  includes  time  devoted  to  study  and  chapel  on  Sun- 
day ;  some  will  think  the  hours  of  work  rather  long. 

In  the  boarding  school  the  arrangement  of  dormi- 
tories demands  attention.  Cubicles  are  favoured  by 
many  as  a  proper  arrangement;  this  plan,  however, 
presents  grave  objections.  As  to  the  desirability  of  par- 
tial isolation  as  a  means  of  providing  some  privacy,  any 
schoolmaster  or  mistress  can  form  an  opinion  ;  but  there 
are  distinct  sanitary  disadvantages  which  must  follow 
such  a  system.  No  fair  circulation  of  air  can  occur 
around  the  bed,  while  draughts  are  not  prevented. 
Wooden  partitions  cause  further  difficulty  as  to  keeping 
the  floor  clean  in  a  limited  space.  A  bath  should  be 
used  daily  cold  in  summer,  tepid  in  winter;  when  this  is 
impracticable,  at  least  the  body  should  be  washed. 


HEALTH   OF  EYES  AND   SIGHT  125 

Besides  attention  to  toilet,  and  cleaning  the  teeth, 
the  eyes,  ears,  and  nose,  the  child  should  be  trained  to 
take  a  few  deep  breaths  on  rising  in  the  morning ;  full 
expansion  of  the  chest  helps  to  restore  a  quicker  circu- 
lation in  the  brain,  which  is  lowered  during  the  hours 
of  sleep. 

Healthiness  of  the  eyes  must  be  cared  for,  in  the 
first  place,  by  keeping  them  clean  and  bathing  with 
water  in  washing ;  all  discharge  from  the  lids  or 
soreness  of  the  margins  specially  require  care  in 
this  matter.  Any  discharge  from  the  eyes  seen  in 
school  should  not  be  removed  with  the  pocket  hand- 
kerchief, but  with  a  piece  of  lint  or  cotton  wool, 
which  should  afterwards  be  burnt.^  Practice  in  dis- 
tant vision  is  useful,  especially  for  children  in  towns ; 
this  relaxes  the  muscular  apparatus  inside  the  eye- 
ball, and  gives  the  eyes  healthy  exercise.  Let  the 
child  look  up  the  street,  watch  a  horse  till  out  of 
sight,  look  at  distant  spires  or  tall  buildings,  or  up 
to  the  sky  and  see  the  clouds  or  the  sunset  glows. 
In  the  country  the  flight  of  birds,  distant  hedges 
and  trees,  or  the  course  of  the  river  may  be  fol- 
lowed, while  the  stars  are  seen  at  night.  Among 
objects  to  look  at  let  me  mention  the  good  effects  of 
casts  of  statuary,  busts,  and  full  figures  which  should 
adorn   the   schoolhouse   as   well   as  the   college.     Pic- 

1  See  "  Study  of  Children,"  Chapter  XII.,  on  Health  Management  in 
School. 


126  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

tures  and  wall  drawings  give  colour  as  well  as  form ; 
with  large  figure  photographs  the  eyes  in  following 
the  lines  of  the  face  and  the  features  receive  train- 
ing of  real  value  ;  things  of  beauty  train  the  sight 
as  well  as  the  taste. 

Small-typed  books,  especially  stories  badly  printed 
on  cheap  paper,  tend  to  hurt  the  eyes  by  producing 
very  indistinct  impressions.  The  book  should  be  held 
steady  in  reading,  and  the  body  quiet ;  do  not  let 
the  child  read  in  a  rocking  chair  at  home. 

In  school  there  should  be  plenty  of  light  to  each 
desk ;  indirect  sunlight  is  best,  and  where  possible 
the  Hght  should  fall  from  a  window  on  the  left-hand 
side  so  as  not  to  throw  a  shadow  of  the  pen  on  the 
letters  written.  At  night  a  shaded  lamp  is  prefer- 
able to  a  candle,  but  the  rest  of  the  room  should 
not  be  left  in  darkness.  The  eyes  should  not  feel 
fatigued  with  reading;  the  child  ought  not  to  be 
directly  conscious  of  his  eyes,  any  more  than  of  his 
hands  and  stomach ;  muscular  and  even  brain  fatigue 
in  moderate  degree  may  be  healthy,  but  eye  fatigue 
means  something  wrong. 

The  schoolroom  as  a  place  of  education  should  be 
adapted  to  the  purposes  of  child  growth  and  brain 
culture  under  healthful  conditions,  among  which  light, 
air,  and  cleanliness  are  primary  necessities.  Of  lighting 
I  have  already  spoken ;  let  me  add,  the  windows  should 
be  cleaned   every  week.     The  air  of  the   room  needs 


OXYGEN  AND  THE  BRAIN  1 27 

to  be  changed  frequently;  organic  matter  breathed 
out  from  the  lungs  is  highly  poisonous,  this  becomes 
diffused  through  the  room  so  that  the  whole  atmos- 
phere needs  to  be  changed  frequently  by  partially 
opening  the  windows,  which  should  be  thrown  widely 
open  during  the  intervals  of  school  work.  Lamps  and 
the  fire  help  to  consume  the  oxygen  in  the  room,  but 
it  is  the  human  lungs  that  mostly  vitiate  the  atmosphere 
and  render  it  harmful  to  the  body  and  the  brain. 

A  healthy  condition  of  the  blood  demands  proper 
feeding  and  digestion,  while  for  its  purity  fresh  air 
and  oxygen  are  needed  in  abundance. 

Oxygen  is  necessary  to  almost  all  forms  of  living 
things;  even  the  lowest  forms  of  animal  life,  such  as 
amoebae,  lose  their  activity  and  life  when  deprived  of 
oxygen.  Brain  cells  and  other  tissues  of  the  body 
are  as  sensitive  as  these  amoebae ;  the  energy  they  dis- 
play depends  upon  temporary  storage  of  oxygen,  which 
when  again  set  free  produces  force.  Oxygen  is  also 
stored  in  the  blood  in  the  tissues  and  in  the  muscles ; 
the  red  substance  of  the  blood  (haemoglobin)  readily 
absorbs  oxygen  in  the  lungs,  while  the  circulation  of 
the  blood  carries  it  to  the  brain,  the  muscles,  and  all 
parts  of  the  body;  in  so  doing  it  aids  processes  of 
digestion  and  assimilation.  Pure  air  containing  oxy- 
gen, as  it  passes  over  the  surface  of  the  body  and 
through  the  nose,  promotes  health ;  hence  the  impor- 
tance of  a  clean  skin.     Plants  kept  in  rooms  need  to 


128  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

have  their  leaves  washed  that  they  may  absorb  gases 
from  the  air.  The  atmosphere  of  a  room  may  become 
poisonous,  not  only  from  the  amount  of  oxygen  which 
is  being  consumed  or  used  up,  but  also  from  the  accu- 
mulation of  waste  materials  thrown  off  by  the  breath, 
which  when  re-breathed  from  the  air  poison  the  blood 
and  the  brain. 

As  to  the  temperature  of  the  room  Dr.  Burnham^ 
says :  "  In  this  country  [America]  it  seems  necessary  to 
have  the  temperature  of  the  schoolroom  nearly  70°  F. 
It  should  never  exceed  this ;  and  with  adequate  ventila- 
tion may  be  less."  I  have  often  found  schoolrooms 
too  hot  and  enervating  when  above  62°  F.  Plants 
grown  at  too  high  a  temperature  become  delicate ;  with 
insufficient  light  and  air  they  become  ill  proportioned, 
long  in  the  stem,  with  small,  pale  leaves ;  they  produce 
flowers,  but  the  plant  loses  stamina,  and  the  power  of 
resisting  adverse  circumstances  is  lessened.  Let  the 
pupils  see  plants  growing  healthily  in  the  schoolroom, 
kept  clean,  watered,  placed  in  the  light,  and  well  aired 
daily.  Thus  the  children  may  learn  something  of 
practical  hygiene,  as  they  see  how  we  keep  plants 
growing  and  healthy. 

Much  has  been  written  as  to  the  construction  of 
the  best  form  of  school-desks.  When  these  are  provided, 
it  remains  for  the  class  teacher  to  see  that  they  are 
properly  used  by  the  pupils. 

1  Pedagogical  Seminary,  June,  1892,  p.  31. 


SCHOOL  DESKS  AND   WRITING  129 

The  following  practical  directions  are  given  by  Mr. 
Priestley  Smith  :  ^  — 

"  The  pupil  must  have  a  comfortable  seat  with  a 
support  for  the  lower  part  of  his  back.  He  must 
work  at  a  sloping  desk,  not  a  flat  table.  He  must  be 
so  placed  that  there  is  plenty  of  light  upon  his  work, 
and  that  he  is  not  dazzled  by  light  in  his  eyes.  His 
books  must  be  printed  in  good,  large,  clear  type,  so 
that  he  may  be  able  to  read  them  without  the  slightest 
difficulty  at  the  proper  distance.  He  must  be  accus- 
tomed to  read  with  the  book  propped  well  up  in  front 
of  him,  so  that  he  may  not  need  to  stoop  over  it.  He 
must  be  taught  to  write  sitting  square  to  the  desk  and 
upright,  not  twisted  to  one  side  and  bending  over  it. 
These  things  must  be  attended  to  at  home  as  well  as 
at  school." 

If  the  pupil  is  allowed  to  place  the  copy  book  on 
which  he  is  writing  a  few  inches  to  the  right  of  the 
medium  plane  of  his  body,  the  head  is  turned  to  the 
right,  the  left  shoulder  is  raised,  while  the  right  sinks, 
and  the  spine  is  bent  to  the  left.  The  body  becomes 
fatigued  with  this  strain  and  the  right  eye  is  brought 
nearer  to  the  paper  than  the  left ;  this  helps  to  de- 
velop unequal  sight  in  the  two  eyes,  and  short  sight, 
which  may  be  avoided  by  a  good  position.  For  this 
reason  the  written  lines  should  not  be  too  long ;  while 

1  "  Eyesight  and  How  We  Lose  It."     Hamilton,  Adams  &  Co.,  London. 
K 


I30  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

to   carry   into   effect    a   good   position   in   writing   the 
"  vertical  script "  has  been  introduced.^ 

The  objects  to  be  gained  by  physical  training  are 
admirably  described  by  Dr.  Edward  H.  Hartwell;^  he 
says :  "  Speaking  broadly,  the  muscular  and  nervous 
tissues,  well  termed  the  '  master  tissues,'  constitute  the 
executive  or  working  mechanism  of  the  body;  and  the 
chief  function  of  all  the  other  tissues  of  the  body  is  to 
serve  either  as  their  purveyors  or  scavengers.  The 
structural  integrity  and  functional  power  of  the  pur- 
veyor and  scavenger  tissues  are  indirectly  promoted  by 
muscular  activity;  but  the  most  important  effects  of 
muscular  exercise  are,  (i)  the  attainment  or  mainten- 
ance of  normal  size  and  strength  by  the  master  tissues, 
and,  (2)  the  acquirement  of  correct  and  economical 
habits  of  neuro-muscular  action.  The  ends  of  physical 
training,  then,  are  hygienic  on  the  one  hand,  and  educa- 
tional on  the  other.  No  comprehensive  system  of  phys- 
ical training  can  be  considered  safe  or  rational  in 
which  these  ends  are  not  clearly  recognised  and  intelli- 
gently provided  for  —  through  the  adaption  of  its  exer- 
cises to  the  varied  and  varying  wants  and  requirements 
of  the  individuals  to  be  trained,  in  respect  to  their  sex, 
age,  strength,  mental  capacity,  and  calling  in  life.  The 
results  which  should  be  secured  by  such  a  system  are 
briefly  these :  erect  and  graceful  carriage  of  the  head 

^  See  Dr.  Burnham,  op.  cit. 
2  Boston  Medical  and  Surgical  Journal,  December,  1891. 


DIETARY  AND   SCHOOL  MEALS  131 

and  trunk;  a  broad  and  capacious  chest  in  which  the 
heart  and  the  lungs,  developed  to  their  normal  size  and 
strength,  shall  have  free,  full,  and  regular  play ;  square 
shoulders;  a  straight  back;  fully  developed  and  well- 
rounded  limbs,  and  the  power  to  execute  with  ease, 
precision,  and  economy  exercises  of  strength,  speed,  and 
skill  in  ordinary  gymnastic  and  athletic  feats." 

Physical  exercises  designed  to  train  brain  action  and 
evolve  its  mental  powers  I  have  sufficiently  dealt  with 
in  other  chapters  (Chapter  VII.,  p.  145). 

The  desideratum  of  physical  culture  for  girls  and 
boys  is  to  attain  the  highest  degree  of  healthy  growth 
and  development  of  brain  and  body  that  may  be  possi- 
ble during  the  period  of  school  life. 

It  is  impossible  to  carry  out  such  an  ideal  without 
attention  to  diet  and  the  proper  arrangement  of  meals. 
The  dietary  needed  will  be  much  the  same  in  the  school 
and  in  the  family ;  school  meals  form  a  not  unimpor- 
tant part  of  the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  the  man- 
agement, and  of  the  members  of  the  teaching  staff. 
The  dining  hall  and  the  luncheon  room  afford  oppor- 
tunities for  social  and  moral  training,  as  apart  from  the 
schoolroom  and  playground.  Initial  ideas  of  thrift, 
self-help,  and  kindness  to  a  neighbour  find  play  in  fol- 
lowing the  rule  "Waste  nothing,"  either  by  broken 
pieces  or  by  eating  too  much  and  picking  out  the  best. 
Never  let  the  stronger  child  pick  and  choose  at  meals ; 
it  is  well  that  sufficient  supervision  should  be  kept  over 


132  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

manners  at  table  to  assure  that  the  food  is  eaten  by 
each  child,  and  neither  shirked  nor  wasted,  while  suffi- 
cient quantity  is  supplied  to  those  who  need  it  the 
most.  In  some  schools  lunch  is  provided,  and  the  chil- 
dren go  home  to  dinner  after  morning  work ;  this  is 
usually  the  case  in  the  English  high  schools  for  girls. 
When  the  luncheon  room  is  a  buffet,  and  each  pupil 
can  buy  what  she  likes  for  her  money,  the  girl  may 
select  "  bun  and  lemonade  "  or  fruit  only  ;  most  need  at 
least  bread  and  butter  with  milk.  The  meal  is  not  a 
luxury,  but  a  necessity  for  brain  growth,  especially 
for  such  as  do  not  eat  good  breakfasts.  It  would  be 
better  for  the  parents  to  arrange  what  the  child  shall 
have  as  adapted  to  the  home  meals.  Let  there  be  pro- 
vided :  "  two  sandwiches  and  milk,"  "  bread  and  but- 
ter with  milk  or  cup  of  chocolate,"  "  bread  and  stewed 
fruit,"  "  biscuits  with  milk,  or  gingerbread."  When 
work  goes  on  from  9.30  a.m.  to  i  p.m.,  the  brain  cannot 
profit  by  the  stimulus  and  the  training  it  receives  if  the 
supply  of  food  to  the  stomach  has  not  been  replenished 
since  the  previous  day.  "Ex  nihilo  nihil  fit."  It  is 
like  growing  a  plant  in  poor  soil ;  it  becomes  thin  and 
weedy  from  the  want  of  assimilated  material.  The 
brain  is  a  structure  made  up  of  nerve  cells  and  nerve 
fibres  which  cannot  retain  impressions  and  perform 
work  without  food  for  their  nutrition.  Some  children 
must  be  taught  that  it  is  their  duty  to  eat  that  they  may 
live  and  work. 


BREAKFAST  AND   LUNCHEON  133 

At  meals  the  food  should  be  varied,  sufficient  in 
quantity,  good  of  its  kind,  and  distributed  according 
to  the  needs,  not  simply  the  inclinations,  of  each  indi- 
vidual ;  when  meals  are  monotonous,  children  will  leave 
their  food  even  if  hungry.  The  food  should  be  prop- 
erly selected,  well  cooked,  and  efficiently  served. 

The  meals  should  be  planned ;  if  breakfast  is  at  8 
A.M.,  the  last  substantial  meal  having  been  made  at  1.30 
P.M.  the  previous  day,  the  supply  of  nourishment  in 
the  body  is  exhausted;  every  child  should  begin  the 
day  with  a  good  breakfast.  In  girls'  high  schools 
most  of  the  work  is  done  between  9.30  and  i  o'clock; 
breakfast  is  a  necessary  preparation  for  such  an  amount 
of  work.  If  lessons  are  prepared  before  breakfast,  at 
least  bread  and  butter  and  a  cup  of  hot  coffee  should 
be  provided  on  rising. 

Dr.  Clement  Dukes  ^  gives  the  following  as  suitable 
breakfast  dietary :  — 

Sunday.     Sausages,  broiled  ham  and  eggs. 
Monday.     Dried  fish,  steak. 
Tuesday.     Porridge,  eggs  buttered. 
Wednesday.     Pressed  beef,  brawn. 
Thursday.     Porridge,  dried  fish. 
Friday.     Cold  ham,  bacon. 
Saturday.     Porridge,  fresh  fish. 

Bread  and  butter  with  milk  should  be  unstinted ;  coffee 
with  half  milk  may  be  substituted  for  older  children. 

1  "The  Essential  of  School  Diet."     Perceval  and  Co.,  London,  1891. 


134  '^HE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

Sugar  or  salt  at  choice  should  be  supplied  with  the 
porridge.  Dinner,  whether  taken  at  home  or  at  school, 
should  always  be  the  best  meal  of  the  day  —  well  cooked, 
carefully  served,  and  punctual ;  each  item  is  important 
to  promote  good  digestion. 

I  quote  from  Dr.  Dukes's  "  Dinner  Dietary,"  which 
he  gives  at  length :  — 

Sunday.  White  soup,  cold  roast  beef,  potatoes,  salads, 
pickles  or  beet-root,  fresh  fruit,  pies,  whatever  is  in  season. 

Monday.  Roast  shoulder  of  mutton,  onion  sauce,  potatoes, 
mould  of  cornflour  with  jam,  cheese. 

Tuesday.  Clear  soup  with  vegetables,  roast  fillet  of  veal,  or 
boiled  leg  of  mutton,  potatoes,  greens,  plum  pudding  and  sweet 
sauce. 

Wednesday.  Roast  sirloin  of  beef  or  curried  rabbits,  pota- 
toes, cauliflowers,  batter  pudding,  cheese. 

Thursday.  Mutton  broth  with  rice  and  vegetables,  quarter 
of  lamb,  potatoes,  peas,  baked  apple  puddings. 

Friday.  Roast  loin  of  pork  or  boiled  salt  beef,  potatoes, 
carrots,  turnips,  onions,  cabinet  pudding  or  baked  rice,  cheese. 

Saturday.  Pea  soup,  roast  leg  of  mutton  or  Irish  stew, 
potatoes,  parsnips,  boiled  marmalade  puddings. 

A  variety  is  here  given ;  the  details  should  be  changed 
each  week. 

For  the  older  children  at  least,  who  work  in  the 
morning  and  afternoon,  with  some  preparation  of 
lessons  in  the  evening,  a  substantial  tea  at  6  p.m.  is 
necessary.  Bread  in  plenty,  with  jam,  marmalade, 
honey,  treacle,  and  watercress.     Milk  can  be  given,  or, 


EVENING  MEALS;    ECONOMIC  FEEDING  135 

if  preferred,  cocoa.  Tea  and  coffee  should  not  be  com- 
menced early,  and  in  any  case  much  milk  should  be 
taken.  Girls  and  boys  who  are  delicate,  or  bad  eaters, 
and  those  growing  fast,  may  require  in  addition,  egg^ 
fish,  or  cutlet.  After  evening  work,  bread  and  butter 
or  biscuits  with  milk,  or  milk  pudding,  may  be 
taken  if  desired.  The  child  should  not  go  to  bed 
hungry.  I  have  spoken  somewhat  fully  of  dietaries 
because  in  my  experience  many  children  —  whether  liv- 
ing at  home  with  their  parents  who  are  both  able  and 
desirous  to  do  the  best  for  them,  or  those  at  boarding 
school  —  often  take  insufficient  food  for  their  healthy 
growth  and  brain  activity.  Children  vary  much  in 
appetite,  and  the  same  boy  or  girl  at  different  periods 
of  life  may  change;  while  some  are  so  foolish  as 
to  refrain  from  eating  because  they  fear  to  grow 
fat. 

With  some  families  food  is  insufficient  from  lack 
of  means;  still,  cheap  food  is  not  always  economical, 
and  selected  good  food  may  be  inexpensive.  Bread 
made  of  brown  flower  goes  farther  in  nutrition  than 
white  bread.  No  pieces  should  be  wasted.  Good  mar- 
garine or  dripping  may  well  replace  butter.  Bread 
should  be  unstinted;  the  crust  is  twenty-five  per  cent 
more  nourishing  than  the  crumb;  bread  should  never 
be  used  till  the  second  day.  Milk  costs  money,  but  it 
is  very  necessary  for  children;  it  should  be  carefully 
protected  from  dust  and  dirt,  being  received  in  a  re- 


136  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

cently  scalded  jug  and  covered  with  a  sheet  of  clean 
paper  to  keep  out  dust,  which  so  soon  spoils  it. 

Fat  food  is  necessary;  it  may  be  provided  in  the 
form  of  bacon,  butter,  dripping,  margarine,  or  as  suet 
pudding  with  treacle  or  sugar.  Sugar  taken  with  food, 
not  as  sweets,  is  a  useful  heat  former,  and  aids  brain 
nutrition.  Porridge  for  breakfast,  taken  with  sugar 
or  salt,  is  wholesome  and  nourishing;  the  oatmeal 
should  be  put  to  soak  over  night  so  as  to  be  softened 
by  the  morning ;  then  twenty  minutes'  boiling  is  suffi- 
cient for  thorough  cooking.  Cheese  taken  at  dinner  in 
small  quantities  is  to  be  recommended. 

In  every  boarding  school,  and  with  advantage  in  the 
day  school  also,  a  matron  should  superintend  the  diets 
and  be  present  at  meals  to  see  to  the  proper  distribution 
of  the  food.  It  is  an  advantage  that  a  superintendent 
who  knows  the  children,  and  any  with  ailments  or  in- 
dispositions, should  see  that  they  get  and  take  their 
necessary  food.  The  matron  knows  the  child  with 
constant  catarrh,  and  takes  care  both  that  in  the  cloak 
room  the  stockings  are  changed  when  damp,  and  in 
the  dining  room  that  the  fat  of  the  meat  is  eaten. 

With  students  who  have  the  advantage  of  college  life 
after  the  years  spent  at  school,  the  continued  care  of 
health  becomes  a  personal  duty  which  should  not  be 
neglected  in  any  of  the  items  that  have  been  indicated. 
Young  men  and  women  whose  occupations  are  largely 
sedentary  should  be  enabled  and  encouraged  to  take 


STUDENTS  AT  COLLEGE 


137 


exercise  out  of  doors  for  at  least  two  hours  every  day. 
Daily  and  regular  recreation  of  mind  with  active  bod- 
ily exercise  is  necessary  to  assure  that  degree  of  con- 
tinued physical  health  without  which  a  career  of  useful, 
social  employment  after  college  life  and  graduation  can- 
not reasonably  be  expected.  All  the  powers  of  the  body 
and  the  brain  need  exercise  to  keep  up  perfect  health 
and  its  probable  maintenance  in  future  years. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  those  who  have  been 
healthy  and  strong  during  school  years  may  manifest 
the  tendency  of  their  inheritance,  for  good  or  bad, 
during  the  years  spent  at  college,  and  the  reasonable 
care  of  health  is  a  duty  resting  on  every  student. 
Some  inherit  a  tendency  to  gout,  asthma,  recurrent 
headaches,  dyspepsia,  and  consumption,  all  of  which 
are  apt  to  develop  after  adolescence ;  wilful  disregard 
of  personal  health  while  engaged  in  study  is  a  reckless 
disregard  of  the  future. 

Perhaps  advice  as  to  the  need  of  exercise  is  more 
necessary  for  women  students  than  for  men ;  when  the 
conditions  of  living  are  unhygienic  the  power  of  resist- 
ance and  capacity  for  recovering  health  is  usually  less 
in  women  than  in  men.  (See  Chapter  XIII.,  "  The 
Study  of  Children.")  It  is  not  enough  to  sit  out  of 
doors  with  a  book ;  active  exercise  should  be  taken  in 
lawn  tennis,  walking,  cycling,  or  on  horseback. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  advantages  that 
have  resulted   from  providing   higher   educational   ad- 


138 


THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 


vantages  for  women  ;  their  successes  at  college  and  the 
universities  seem  to  be  established.  There  are,  how- 
ever, other  aspects  of  the  case,  which,  although  they 
may  concern  a  minority,  are  still  very  important  to  in- 
dividuals. If  a  student's  life  is  desirable  for  some 
women,  there  are  others  who  not  only  fail  to  derive 
benefit  therefrom,  but  receive  harm  from  the  necessary 
strains  incurred ;  there  is  apparently  more  difficulty  in 
recovering  from  injured  health  among  women  than 
men.  The  following  health  statistics  of  women  at 
college  were  collected  by  Mrs.  Henry  Sidgwick:^  — 


At  ages  3-8  years. 

At  ages  8- 

14  years. 

At  ages  14- 

-18  years. 

American. 

English. 

American. 

English. 

Anaerican. 

English. 

Per  cent  in  excellent 

or  good  health  .  . 

Per  cent  in  fair  health 

Per  cent  in  poor  or 

indifferent  health . 

76.74 
1.84 

21.42 

7145 
16.98 

11.57 

73.33 
2.98 

23.69 

67.09 
22.78 

10.13 

•• 

61.97 
27.14 

10.89 

100.00 

100.00 

100.00 

100.00 

100.00 

Anaemia  with  neurosis,  the  outcome  of  neglect  of 
health-care,  is  apt  to  become  confirmed  as  a  form  of  ner- 
vous dyspepsia  such  as  has  incapacitated  many  women, 
otherwise  intellectually  fitted,  for  a  useful  business  or 
professional  life. 

1  "  Health  Statistics  of  Women  Students  of  Cambridge  and  Oxford," 
1890.  University  Press,  England.  Also  quoted  in  Report  of  Commis- 
sioner of  Education,  Washington,  1891-1892,  Vol.  II. 


BREAKDOWN  AT  COLLEGE 
Average  Age  at  entering  College  Life 


139 


American  18.35  yca«. 
English      21.9    years. 

American. 

English. 

Per  cent  in  excellent  or  good  health 

Per  cent  in  fair  health 

Per  cent  in  poor  or  indifferent  health 

78.16 

1.98 

19.86 

68.20 

22.08 

9.72 

100.00 

100.00 

I  cannot  draw  any  definite  conclusions  from  these 
statistics ;  the  proportion  of  English  students  returned 
as  of  fair  or  indifferent  health  is  much  higher  than 
according  to  my  own  observations  of  one  hundred 
thousand  children  seen  in  English  schools,  mostly  of 
the  poorer  social  class.^ 

Breakdown  of  the  brain  power  and  mental  disabil- 
ties  in  college  life  and  during  the  early  years  of  the 
business  life  of  young  men,  and  of  women  in  their 
domestic  cares  or  occupations,  not  uncommonly  result 
from  want  of  previous  training  to  bear  hard  work  and 
mental  strains.  It  therefore  appears  useful  in  the 
study  of  education  to  trace  the  physical  causes  of 
mental  abilities  and  disabilities,  which  should  be  fol- 
lowed out  in  all  their  details  as  a  basis  of  mental 
hygiene. 

1  See  "  Report  on  the  Scientific  Study  of  the  Mental  and  Physical  Con- 
ditions of  Childhood,"  based  on  one  hundred  thousand  children  observed 
individually  in  schools,  by  the  author.     The  Macmillan  Company. 


CHAPTER   VII 
The  Training  and  Teaching  of  Young  Children 

I  DRAW  some  distinction  between  training  and  teach- 
ing, using  these  terms  for  methods,  not  totally  distinct 
and  separate,  but  rather  separated  as  having  different 
objects  in  view.  Training  is  intended  to  get  the  brain 
ready  or  prepared  to  benefit  by  the  methods  of  instruc- 
tion and  learning.  The  child  must  be  trained  to  speak 
before  there  is  much  value  in  what  he  says;  he  should 
be  trained  to  see  colours  before  you  teach  the  colours 
of  flowers,  and  the  natural  history  of  their  varieties. 
The  child  should  be  familiar  with  numbers  before  em- 
ploying symbols  to  represent  them  in  arithmetic.  You 
should  train  the  child  to  move  his  eyes  up  and  down 
regularly,  as  in  looking  at  points  or  Hues  on  the  black- 
board, before  expecting  him  to  add  a  column  of  figures, 
or  set  down  a  sum  on  the  slate.  It  is  necessary  the 
child  should  understand  that  looking  up  the  map  is 
towards  the  north,  and  turning  his  eyes  to  the  right 
of  the  map  is  looking  east. 

One  difference  between  training  and  teaching  is  that 
in  many  ways  the  child  may  be  trained  by  impressions 
received  without  the  use  of  words,  and  before  these  are 
understood.     Training  the  brain  may  precede  teaching 

140 


EARLY  VOCABULARY 


141 


with  the  young  child  ;  the  nerve  system  may  be  brought 
under  some  control  before  any  attempt  is  made  to  im- 
plant definite  knowledge. 

It  is  doubtful  whether  some  of  the  words  early  ac- 
quired correspond  in  the  child's  mind  with  any  fixed 
ideas  or  thoughts  :  for  instance,  he  may  say  as  words  — 
thing,  gas,  time,  wood,  soft,  ten,  good,  as  words  without 
meaning.  Names  may,  however,  be  associated  early 
with  things  seen,  and  a  little  later  with  actions.  Thus, 
mother,  dinner,  sugar,  bath,  as  terms,  represent  some- 
thing to  the  child;  so  do  going  to  bed,  walking,  sit- 
ting still,  etc. 

In  training  we  produce  many  sensory  impressions, 
and  subsequently  connect  them  with  names. 

The  child  is  shown  a  book  and  made  to  look  at  it; 
then  you  teach  the  word  "book"  as  he  looks  at  you, 
afterwards  making  him  say  the  name  as  he  looks  at  the 
volume.  He  sees  the  object,  learns  the  name,  then  the 
sight  and  the  sound  become  associated  in  his  head  ;  thus 
you  proceed  stage  by  stage  in  early  training  so  as  to  be 
sure  that  each  impression  wanted  is  formed  in  his  brain. 
He  will  subsequently  see  many  books  differing  in  size 
and  in  the  colour  of  the  covers,  but  he  can  connect  the 
common  name  ''book"  with  each  of  them.  Through- 
out your  training  spontaneity  of  action  should  be  en- 
couraged, while  cultivating  action  through  the  senses 
and  by  muscle  sense,  so  as  to  bring  his  brain  under 
control. 


142 


THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 


Training  in  any  physical  action  produces  temporary 
control  of  the  nerve  centres,  and  exercises  the  healthy 
brain  in  the  quick  formation  of  impressions  through 
the  senses ;  much  may  be  done  early  in  brain  training 
by  exercises  in  following  a  moving  object  with  the  eyes, 
and  in  imitating  movements  made  with  the  hands  and  the 
fingers.  In  such  exercises,  if  repeated  at  intervals,  the 
brain  centres  that  have  been  thus  frequently  caused  to 
act  in  harmony  become  connected  by  new  nerve  paths ; 
every  fresh  nerve  path  formed  adds  to  the  development 
of  brain  power.  When  the  child  rests,  those  nerve  cells 
that  were  caused  to  act  in  unison  may  again  act  sepa- 
rately and  spontaneously;  still  they  remain  more  con- 
trollable either  for  repetition  of  the  former  exercise  or 
for  further  action ;  while  under  training  the  brain  cen- 
tres grow  more  apt  for  mental  expression  and  accurate 
control  through  the  senses.  In  the  primeval  forest  it 
is  impossible  to  move  freely  from  place  to  place ;  but 
as  paths  are  cleared  it  becomes  more  and  more  possible 
to  move  between  different  points,  and  as  these  paths 
are  worn  smooth  by  use  it  becomes  easy  to  travel  in 
any  direction  they  may  take. 

The  inborn  faculty  of  imitation  is  the  physiological 
character  of  the  brain  of  which  you  will  first  take  ad- 
vantage in  training. 

I  do  not  think  that  imitation  of  your  movements 
tends  to  raise  any  particular  thought  in  the  young 
child ;  this  has  advantages.     Training  can  begin  before 


COORDINATED   HAND   EXERCISES  1 43 

thoughts  occur  or  are  implanted ;  some  children  think 
too  much  and  yet  need  training.  These  exercises  train 
coordinated  brain  action  and  cultivate  capacity  for  con- 
nected thinking,  but  they  do  not  appear  to  stimulate 
thoughts.^ 

Hand  exercises  are  useful  means  of  training  the 
child's  brain,  causing  his  nerve  centres  to  act  in  the 
same  manner  as  those  of  his  teacher;  good  modes  of 
action,  accurate  and  orderly  (coordinated),  may  thus  be 
cultivated.  Let  the  pupil  stand  in  front  of  you ;  try  to 
get  him  to  look  at  your  hand  as  you  hold  it  out,  and 
then  accurately  respond  to  each  movement  your  fin- 
gers make.  Your  movements  should  be  slow  and  care- 
fully made,  so  that  they  may  be  distinctly  seen  by  the 
child  and  exactly  repeated,  corresponding  in  action 
both  as  to  the  fingers  moved  and  as  to  the  direction 
and  quickness  of  each  act  performed.  Careful  observa- 
tion and  attention  is  required  here,  just  as  in  learning 
anything  else;  this  teaching  should  be  precise  and 
accurate,  not  merely  a  suggestion  of  action.  The 
pupil  must  not  look  at  your  face,  but  watch  your  hand 
and  fingers ;  do  not  talk,  then,  but  train  him  to  respond 
to  your  movements  through  using  his  eyes  only,  and 
get  what  you  want  done  in  silence ;  if  you  talk  he  will 
look  at  your  face.  If  you  cannot  get  the  child  to  fix 
his  eyes  on  your  hand  as  he  stands  in  front  of  you,  pro- 
vide a  looking-glass  in  which  the  pupil  can  see  your 

1  Reference  54,  on  training  children  mentally  feeble. 


144  ^^^  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

right  hand  while  you  stand  on  his  left  side,  so  that  your 
face  is  not  reflected  in  the  mirror.  Begin  by  holding 
out  a  straight  balanced  hand  with  the  fingers  sepa- 
rated; see  that  each  finger  is  straight  and  the  thumb 
not  drooped.  This  will  require  practice,  for  it  corre- 
sponds to  an  attitude  of  attention.  The  pupil  should 
then  produce  this  posture  exactly  and  move  his  fingers 
as  you  do,  dropping  his  hand  when  you  drop  yours. 
Now  for  some  more  advanced  exercises  :  I  will  name  the 
digits  thus  —  A,  the  thumb ;  B,  the  index  finger ;  C,  the 
middle  finger ;  D,  the  ring  finger ;  E,  the  little  finger. 

Make  the  following  movements  with  your  hand,  sep- 
arately, slowly  one  after  another,  at  equal  intervals  of 
time,  so  that  the  pupil  can  see  them  individually  and 
reproduce  each  movement  himself,  bending  or  moving 
each  finger  respectively  to  the  same  degree  as  yours  :  — 

Exercise  I.  A,  bend  thumb ;  A  and  B ;  A,  B,  and 
C;  B,  C,  D,  E. 

Exercise  II.  Bend  A,  B,  C,  D,  E,  together;  A,  E; 
E  only. 

Exercise  III.  B,  index  finger,  moved  from  side  to 
side  without  bending  it  up  or  down. 

Exercise  IV.  A,  bend  thumb ;  B,  moved  from  side  to 
side ;  C,  bend  and  straighten ;  E,  lit- 
tle finger,  moved  from  side  to  side. 

These  exercises  can  be  enlarged  upon  and  varied  to 
any  extent.     It  is  well  after  each  exercise  to  let  the 


EXERCISES   FOR   HANDS  AND  EYES  145 

arm  drop  and  the  nerve  centres  rest ;  before  commenc- 
ing another  exercise  bring  the  hand  up  to  the  straight 
balance.^ 

Movements  and  the  corresponding  nerve  centres  are 
thus  temporarily  coordinated  by  sight  only ;  sight  of 
your  hand  controls  the  brain  action,  and  this  is  indi- 
cated by  action  in  the  child's  hand.  This  kind  of 
training  will  be  useful  in  preparing  the  pupil  to  learn 
numbers,  after  the  numerals  have  been  acquired  as 
words.  After  practice  in  such  coordinated  movements 
the  series  may  be  made  more  complex  and  both  hands 
employed,  either  together  or  alternately,  or  with  the 
feet  and  legs.  Exercises  several  times  repeated  be- 
come retained  in  the  brain  or  learned,  so  that  they  are 
repeated  without  any  further  guidance  from  the  teacher 
and  simply  on  the  direction  to  make  such  an  exercise 
as  you  name ;  this  is  much  like  learning  a  scale  in 
music.  This  established  mode  of  (compound)  brain 
action  indicates  the  formation  of  nerve  paths  connect- 
ing the  nerve  centres  whose  action  you  coordinated 
through  sight. 

I  have  several  times  referred  to  the  importance  of  eye- 
movements  (see  Chapters  III.,  p.  58  ;  IX.,  pp.  180,  185) ; 
they  need  to  be  cultivated  in  brain  training  that  their 
nerve  centres  may  become  controllable  both  by  sight 
and  by  sound.  Make  the  child  move  his  eyes  by  fixing 
his  sight  on  a  small  object  held  in  your  hand  or  fastened 

1  Reference  37.     Evidence  as  to  physical  training. 
L 


146  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

at  the  end  of  a  pointer ;  let  him  follow  it  with  his  eyes 
without  moving  his  head.  Children  move  their  eyes 
readily  in  following  the  light  reflected  from  a  hand 
mirror  as  it  passes  over  the  walls  and  the  ceiling.  In 
ball  play,  the  eyes  move  in  following  the  object; 
cricket  cultivates  rapid  eye-movements,  and  practice 
makes  an  apt  cricketer.  Remember  also  what  was  said 
as  to  the  advantages  of  cultivating  distant  vision.  (See 
Chapter  III.,  p.  66.) 

Movements  of  both  the  hands  and  the  eyes,  after 
they  have  been  acquired  as  described,  may  be  con- 
trolled through  the  ear.  The  child  will  point  or  turn 
his  eyes  as  told,  to  the  right  or  to  the  left,  up  or  down, 
but  before  this  you  must  use  words  and  teaching 
through  the  ear.  Hand  and  eye  movements,  when 
well  under  control,  are  useful  for  producing  the  brain 
impressions  needed  in  teaching  such  varied  subjects 
as  numbers  and  arithmetic,  estimation  of  dimensions, 
area  and  volume,  height  and  distance,  as  well  as  geog- 
raphy. (See  Chapters  I.,  p.  9;  IX.,  p.  180.)  If  the 
pupil's  eyes  move  from  one  object  to  another,  he  re- 
ceives impressions  from  his  eye-movements  (muscle 
sense)  as  well  as  by  sight,  or  if  his  hand  points  to  them 
in  succession  his  muscles  impress  each  movement. 

When  teaching  the  child  to  copy  a  drawing,  say  of  a 
house,  you  control  his  finger  movements  by  sight;  he 
must  look  at  the  length  of  the  line  representing  the 
height  of  the  house  before  he  draws  it,  and  move  his 


EARLY  TRAINING   USED   IN  TEACHING 


147 


eyes  up  and  down  in  making  the  line  with  his  pencil. 
Such  movements  he  may  practise  from  you  before 
using  the  pencil ;  thus  he  learns  to  imitate  your  action, 
then  copies  the  drawing.  In  such  instruction  you  will 
aim  at  getting  some  control  over  the  child's  brain, 
neither  checking  all  his  spontaneous  movements  nor 
expecting  accuracy  at  first.  When  the  boy  measures 
the  top  and  the  sides  of  a  card  at  sight  he  does  so 
by  movement  of  his  eyes  from  one  corner  to  the  other, 
and  receives  a  different  degree  of  impression  in  each 
case  by  muscle  sense.  "Vertical,"  "horizontal,"  and 
"sloping"  are  terms  or  words  (sounds)  that  we  con- 
nect with  direction,  and  must  be  coupled  in  the  child's 
brain  with  impressions  of  eye-movements ;  so  also  the 
points  of  the  compass  as  seen  on  the  map.  Later  on 
we  shall  see  that  much  is  learned  by  the  degree  or 
amount  of  muscle  movements  as  well  as  their  number, 
and  that  many  impressions  are  thus  received  on  the 
brain  which  are  employed  in  teaching  comparison  and 
proportion.  To  get  the  eye  and  hand  movements  well 
under  your  control,  and  the  impressions  thus  received 
by  the  brain  retained  in  their  order,  does  much  to 
cultivate  mental  aptitude  and  prepare  the  way  for 
further  instruction.  Such  teaching  does  not  require 
much  use  of  words;  you  will  proceed  stage  by  stage 
in  your  work ;  each  acquirement  prepares  the  brain 
for  training  under  guidance  in  the  future. 

Such   training  as  I  have    described  —  though   it   be 


148  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

called  physical  —  is  adapted  to  produce  brain  impres- 
sions very  analogous  to  mental  action,  while  the  em- 
ployment of  words  is  hardly  necessary. 

Muscle  sense  is  an  important  source  of  brain  impres- 
sions that  I  must  dwell  upon ;  particularly  as  the  use- 
fulness of  this  sense  does  not  appear  to  have  attracted 
sufficient  attention  hitherto  in  educational  methods. 
(See  Chapter  II.,  p.  37.)  The  muscles  produce  all  the 
movements  you  see ;  every  movement  results  from 
the  action  of  a  nerve-muscular  apparatus,  whether 
it  be  gesture,  speech,  or  writing.  The  nerve  centre 
stimulates  the  muscle  to  contract;  the  muscle  then 
sends  up  an  impression  to  the  brain ;  this  stimulus 
results  either  from  the  muscle  contracting  and  short- 
ening (producing  movement),  or  from  its  tension  and 
being  pulled  upon  (as  by  a  weight  in  the  hand).  With 
your  eyes  shut  you  know  when  you  move  your  hand, 
you  can  touch  your  eye  or  nose,  you  can  count  your 
movements,  say  in  what  direction  your  hand  moves, 
and  whether  quickly  or  slowly.  Further,  if  you  press 
a  finger  on  the  table,  you  know  whether  you  are  press- 
ing lightly  or  hard ;  if  weights  are  placed  in  your 
hands  you  can  tell  which  is  the  heavier.  In  the  kind 
of  exercises  described  you  do  much  to  train  the  brain 
through  the  employment  of  muscle  sense  in  move- 
ment ;  you  may  exercise  muscle  sense  in  tension  by 
use  of  weights  placed  in  the  hands.  In  this  mode  of 
physical   training   you  will   have  the  means  of   acting 


EXERCISE  OF  MUSCLE  SENSE  149 

on  the  child's  brain,  whether  he  has  mental  faculty  or 
not ;  the  power  to  deal  with  him  and  produce  impres- 
sions is  in  your  hands,  you  can  make  him  do  some 
things  and  feel  some  impressions.  This  concerns  your 
work  with  a  very  young  child  or  a  pupil  lacking  in 
mental  ability.^  If  you  cannot  at  first  teach  him  names, 
reading,  and  writing,  you  have  here  a  form  of  training 
that  can  be  employed.  If  the  child  is  very  dull  he 
may  be  unable  at  first  to  reproduce  your  movements 
with  the  same  accuracy  as  another  child ;  still  you 
can  train  his  muscle  sense,  and  as  this  improves,  the 
brain  centres  become  more  fully  organised  by  the 
practice,  while  new  nerve  paths  are  formed  among 
them,  so  that  your  patient,  persistent,  intelligent  ef- 
forts lead  to  good  results,  and  the  dull  children  may 
be  greatly  brightened. 

This  training  in  movements  may  be  called  "physi- 
cal" training,  but  as  shown,  it  is  adapted  to  produce 
brain  impressions  very  analogous  to  mental  action, 
though  the  employment  of  words  is  not  necessary. 
It  is,  however,  very  fatiguing  and  cannot  be  long  con- 
tinued like  drill ;  on  this  ground,  and  for  other  reasons, 
it  seems  to  me  that  such  physical  brain  training  should 
be  conducted  by  the  class  teacher  in  very  short  lessons, 
say  of  five  minutes  at  most,  while  drilling  is  perhaps 
left  to  a  special  teacher  devoted  to  the  work.  The 
object  of  the  kind  of  brain  training  I  urge  is  to  give 

1  Deficient  children.     See  References  17,  20,  21,  22,  and  44. 


150  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

capacity  for  future  instruction ;  the  class  teacher  should 
then  be  familiar  with  this  as  well  as  the  other  sub- 
jects to  be  taught  hereafter,  and  include  all  the  train- 
ing that  is  wanted  for  the  next  stage  of  class  teaching. 
Further,  the  conduct  of  training  in  imitation  of  action 
accustoms  the  pupils  to  their  teacher,  and  is  likely  to 
lead  to  harmonious  understanding  of  one  another. 
Where  the  subjects  of  class  instruction  are  reading, 
writing,  arithmetic  up  to  addition,  with  the  use  of 
maps,  the  pupils  need  previous  brain  training  in  look- 
ing at  and  seeing,  in  finger  movements,  and  in  ap- 
preciation of  numbers,  etc. 

The  mistress  of  a  school  had  learned  something  about 
the  observation  of  nerve  signs  in  children,  and  their 
association  with  brain  conditions  causing  mental  dul- 
ness ;  this  she  explained  to  the  other  teachers  of  the 
staff.  The  children  in  a  very  dull  class  were  then 
observed,  and  it  was  found  that  nearly  all  showed  some 
subnormal  nerve  signs  (see  Chapter  III.);  the  pupils 
in  a  bright  class  were  also  observed,  and  very  few  were 
here  found  with  any  defects  in  movement  or  in  expres- 
sion. The  teachers  determined  to  endeavour  by  their 
training  to  improve  the  hand  balance,  finger  action, 
and  eye-movements  of  the  dull  children.  Their  efforts 
resulted  in  this  :  three  months  later  most  of  the  dullards 
had  been  so  much  brightened  in  their  general  brain 
power  that  they  were  removed  to  the  upper  class. ^ 

1  Reference  54. 


GYMNASTIC  EXERCISES  151 

Preparatory  training  does  not  necessarily  produce 
immediate  results  in  mental  power ;  it  has,  however, 
been  shown  by  experience  that  the  well-trained  child 
acquires  knowledge  more  easily  and  accurately  after 
a  period  of  preliminary  training. 

Dr.  Hartwell  speaks  of  exercises  of  "  the  coarse 
adjustments  of  the  body,"  in  contrast  with  quickness 
and  accuracy  of  eye  and  hand  movements;  it  is  on 
the  latter  I  have  mainly  dwelt  as  a  means  of  training 
intellectual  capacity.  Dr.  Hartwell  says : ^  "In  gen- 
eral, we  may  say,  that  the  Grecian  gymnastics  and 
athletics,  and  the  martial  exercises  of  the  ancient 
and  mediaeval  Gauls  and  Teutons,  were  of  a  char- 
acter to  affect  chiefly  the  fundamental  or  earliest  de- 
veloped neuro-muscular  mechanisms  which  constitute 
the  coarse  adjustment  of  the  body.  The  more  mas- 
sive bodily  virtues  of  strength,  endurance,  and  speed 
are  promoted  by  popular  sports ;  whereas  dexterity, 
address,  sleight-of-hand,  quickness  and  accuracy  of  eye 
and  hand,  require  more  specialised  and  complicated 
forms  of  exercise  for  their  development.  In  other 
words,  British  sports  are  insufficient  for  the  purpose 
of  giving  a  complete  training  to  the  fundamental  and 
accessory  groups  of  muscles,  and  require  to  be  sup- 
plemented by  such  drill  as  is  afforded  by  the  sys- 
tematic gymnastics  of  the  Swedes  and  Germans.  For 
purely  educational  ends  no  system  of  physical  training 

1  Dr.  Hartwell,  op.  cii.,  1892. 


152  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

has  yet  been  devised  which  is  equal  to  the  Swedish 
school  gymnastics.  American  physical  training  will 
remain  a  thing  of  shreds  and  patches,  unless  the  pro- 
moters and  governors  of  our  educational  institutions 
shall  set  themselves  to  learn  and  to  apply  the  teach- 
ing of  science  and  experience  with  regard  to  the 
nature,  scope,  and  results  of  physical  education." 

To  what  are  here  described  as  British  sports  and 
Swedish  gymnastics,  which  exercise  the  body  and  the 
muscles,  I  have  added  and  here  present  for  your  use 
exercises  in  movements  and  through  the  senses  which 
afford  brain  training  adapted  to  evolve  the  child's 
mental  powers  and  healthiness. 

It  is  necessary  to  train  the  brain  centres  for  the 
purpose  of  rendering  them  apt  for  mental  processes. 
Accurate  impressions  are  essential;  these  must  be 
often  repeated,  in  order  that  they  may  be  exactly  re- 
tained in  the  brain ;  this  is  true  both  for  a  set  of 
movements  and  in  learning  to  pronounce  words.  The 
exactness  of  the  impressions  made  on  the  brain  is  a 
physiological  matter ;  it  is  much  under  the  control  of 
the  teacher,  whose  method  is  to  produce  impressions 
one  at  a  time,  by  sight,  then  through  the  ear,  and 
others  by  feeling  (muscle  sense).  The  understanding 
of  the  impressions  received  is  something  occurring  in 
the  pupil's  brain ;  it  is  an  interaction  among  the  nerve 
centres  which  we  should  not  attempt  to  produce  till 
we  know  by  response  in  the  child  —  or  other  reason- 


IMPRESSIONS   WITHOUT   UNDERSTANDING  153 

able  evidence  —  that  the  primary  impressions  have 
been  received  and  retained. 

Neither  movements  in  physical  training,  nor  the 
words  the  child  is  taught  to  pronounce,  have  a  mean- 
ing connected  with  them  in  his  mind  at  first.  Exact- 
ness and  retentiveness  of  impressions  by  sight,  sound, 
and  feeling  must  be  produced  first,  then  these  may 
be  coupled  in  repetition ;  thus  in  brain  action  the 
nerve  centres  become  connected  by  the  formation 
of  nerve  paths  among  them ;  **  understanding  "  comes 
later,  and  probably  corresponds  to  some  gently  spread- 
ing area  of  the  brain  in  action,  so  that  this  should  not 
be  attempted  till  the  primary  impressions  themselves 
are  retained  and  accurate.     (See  Chapter  VIII.,  p.  164.) 

Red,  white,  blue,  may  be  produced  as  primary  sight 
impressions;  "red,"  **  white,"  "blue,"  may  then  be 
pronounced  as  words ;  in  repetition  each  colour  and 
name  may  be  coupled  by  association,  a  sight  impres- 
sion with  each  term.  At  another  lesson  each  sight 
impression  may  be  coupled  with  the  term  "colour," 
—  red  "colour,"  white  "colour,"  blue  "colour."  Then 
"  colour  seen  "  may  be  abstracted  from  the  teaching, 
and  applied  to  the  discrimination  and  description  of 
coloured  objects,  —  red,  white,  and  blue  flowers.  This 
is  why  I  prefer  teaching  colour  with  pieces  of  paper, 
etc.,  not  coloured  objects  of  special  form,  so  that  the 
colour  seen  may  form  the  impression  alone,  and  on 
other  occasions  may  be  abstracted  from  among  many 


154  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

impressions  received  by  sight.  Children  are  often 
confused  in  expressing  their  early  impressions,  they 
will  name  sounds  as  light  or  dark,  or  objects  as  large 
or  heavy,  indiscriminately ;  the  pupil  cannot  classify 
his  sensory  impressions  till  he  has  received  and  re- 
tained many  results  of  his  training,  coupled  with 
names  for  expression. 

Discrimination  and  choice  indicate  interaction  among 
the  nerve  centres  of  the  child's  brain,  and  form  an 
elementary  mode  of  mental  action  worth  training.  A 
very  young  child  without  the  use  of  words  may  make 
choice  between  objects  and  colours  seen,  or  respond 
more  readily  to  certain  sounds.  He  may  select  from 
objects  before  him  a  bright  sovereign  in  preference  to 
a  dull  farthing,  even  if  after  taking  it  up  he  only  puts 
it  in  his  mouth.  Such  discrimination  and  choice  is 
a  very  rudimentary  preparation  for  making  compari- 
sons, and  precedes  the  faculty  for  judging  of  similarity 
or  difference  among  sensory  impressions.  The  dis- 
crimination and  retention  of  sensory  impressions  under 
guidance  lead  to  experience  which  forms  an  intelli- 
gent basis  of  choice  ;  when  two  objects  are  seen,  two 
sight  impressions  are  produced  in  the  brain,  and  the 
stronger  is  expressed  in  action.  Training  in  making 
a  choice  is  an  early  method  of  cultivating  the  child's 
character  in  ability  to  make  up  his  mind  at  once.  A 
young  child  when  asked,  "  Shall  I  read  to  you .? "  just 
says  "yes"  or  "no,"  or  cannot  decide.     In  an  older 


TEACHING  COMPARISON  1 55 

child  experience  helps  him  to  decide ;  former  impres- 
sions arise  in  connection  with  reading ;  it  means  keep- 
ing quiet  and  not  going  out  to  play.  Training  in 
making  a  choice  is  an  aid  to  cultivating  voluntary 
power,  after  some  experience  has  been  acquired  under 
guidance.     (See  Chapter  X.,  p.  205.) 

In  brain  training  a  fixed  set  of  impressions  united 
to  act  in  a  certain  order  is  often  required ;  each  should 
be  accurate,  and  the  whole  series  well  retained,  ready 
for  reactivity.  This  may  be  cultivated  in  repeated 
physical  exercises,  or  by  words  first  taught  separately, 
then  repeated  in  a  certain  order.  Thus,  the  letters  of 
the  alphabet  separately,  then  in  their  order ;  or,  more 
usefully,  the  elementary  sounds  may  be  taught.  The 
use  of  numerals  is  so  necessary  in  teaching  that  I  think 
they  should  be  taught  early  as  an  order  of  words  5 
among  older  children  verses  may  be  learned. 

A  fixed  set  of  impressions  in  the  brain  of  the  child 
is  needed  when  you  try  to  cultivate  the  faculty  of 
comparison,  and  the  expression  of  addition  or  pro- 
portion. In  training  the  child,  a  mental  standard  of 
weight  may  be  established  by  placing  one  ounce,  two, 
three,  and  so  on  up  to  ten  ounces  in  his  hand  in  succes- 
sion, thus  producing  proportional  strains  on  the  muscles, 
—  as  described  in  Chapter  II.,  —  and  impressions  of 
corresponding  degree  in  his  brain  will  be  retained 
after  practice.  (See  Chapter  X.,  p.  199,  on  Volun- 
tary Power.)    The  feeling  of  each  weight  may  then  be 


156  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

associated  with  the  numerals ;  thus  he  learns  to  appre- 
ciate and  express  an  ounce,  two  ounces,  etc.  The  pupil 
learns  weights  as  he  learns  other  things,  by  impression 
through  the  senses ;  he  learns  colour  by  sight,  num- 
bers by  movement  of  his  hands  and  eyes,  weight  and 
proportional  weights  by  the  sense  of  the  muscle  strain. 
In  such  a  lesson  it  is  useful  to  teach  that  you  are 
** weighing";  by  and  by,  after  experience,  the  abstract 
idea  of  weight  and  pressure  will  be  understood  by 
the  child.  Weight,  as  apart  from  dimensions,  is  im- 
pressed by  using  iron  weights  in  which  size  and 
weight  are  directly  proportional,  in  contrast  with 
empty  or  weighted  pill  boxes.  I  think  weighing  in 
the  hands  gives  better  early  training  than  the  use  of 
scales. 

Measurement  of  length  can  be  taught  by  movements 
of  the  head  and  the  eyes.  Give  the  child  sticks  —  one 
inch,  two,  five  inches  long ;  make  him  look  at  each  in 
turn  from  end  to  end,  then  feel  the  length  with  his 
fingers ;  each  length  may  afterwards  be  expressed  by  a 
number.  Such  training  by  employing  muscle  sense  is 
useful  in  teaching  dimensions,  area,  volume,  and  pro- 
portion ;  sensory  impressions  are  here  produced  by 
muscular  movements,  not  by  muscle  strain  (see  Chap- 
ter II.,  p.  37);  this  is  less  easy  to  control,  hence  I  think 
the  use  of  weights  the  best  means  for  early  training 
in  comparison. 

In  training  the  brain  you  thus  proceed  to  teach  the 


TRAINING  STAGE  BY   STAGE  1 57 

names  of  the  numerals,  and  repeat  them  in  order ; 
then  establish  a  mental  standard  of  weight,  and  a 
standard  of  measurement,  employing  the  numerals  for 
expression.  All  this  helps  to  produce  fixed  and  accu- 
rate impressions  on  the  brain,  which  will  be  employed 
in  their  revived  activity  when  teaching  comparison  and 
proportion,  as  well  as  the  use  of  symbols,  which  facili- 
tate calculations  as  much  as  words  aid  connected  think- 
ing and  expression. 

Training  must  proceed  stage  by  stage.  The  pupil 
can  feel  the  greater  strain  of  four  ounces  in  his  hand 
after  the  two  ounce  weight,  and  learn  to  express  this 
as  "  the  greater  weight "  before  he  names  the  weights ; 
it  is  but  little  good  for  him  to  name  the  weight  before 
he  has  felt  it.  Again,  the  pupil  can  say  which  stick 
looks  and  feels  longer,  before  he  can  estimate  the 
length  and  express  it,  which  needs  more  practice. 

Elementary  training  in  mental  processes  a  little  more 
advanced  may  be  used  in  comparison  as  to  "  agree- 
ment or  difference,"  in  any  such  lesson  impressions 
previously  made  in  the  brain  are  compared  under  guid- 
ance. The  teacher  should  carefully  consider  some 
one  point  for  comparison,  it  may  be  weight,  length, 
size,  or  colour.  Each  of  these  characters  should  have 
been  taught  previously  by  many  examples  where  the 
sensory  impression  has  been  associated  in  the  teach- 
ing with  terms  of  description ;  it  is  thus  our  business 
to  trace  out  and  study  the   impressions   produced  in 


158  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

good  training,  and  not  to  be  satisfied  with  a  con- 
nected train  of  ideas  in  our  own  minds  which  are  to 
be  implanted  in  the  child's  brain  by  the  use  of  words 
only. 

Thus :  objects  such  as  flowers  may  be  compared  as 
to  colour ;  this  must  follow  teaching  of  the  colours 
and  their  names ;  it  is  also  necessary  that  the  child 
should  know  that  the  term  "  colour  "  includes  red,  white, 
and  blue.  From  among  many  coloured  flowers  the 
pupil  is  guided  to  select  those  of  the  same  colour. 
Weights  felt  are  alike  or  unlike ;  the  sticks  felt  and 
seen  are  of  the  same  length  or  different;  the  feeling 
of  two  series  of  movements  made  with  the  hand  are 
alike,  or  one  series  is  greater  and  more  frequent  than 
the  other. 

A  further  stage  is  to  discriminate  size  from  weight, 
as  by  the  use  of  weighted  pill  boxes ;  to  aid  abstraction 
and  appreciation  of  the  characters  compared,  lessons  in 
number,  weight,  length,  and  colour  should  at  first  be 
short  —  say  ten  minutes.  This  kind  of  training  by 
sensory  impressions  is  necessary  before  we  have  any 
right  to  expect  the  pupil  to  understand  the  teaching 
of  equal  quantities,  addition,  proportion  as  taught  by 
the  use  of   figures,  or  description  of  form  and  shape. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

Advancing  School  Method  and  Teaching 

The  child  on  entering  school  is  placed  under  a  new 
set  of  circumstances  adapted  both  for  teaching  and 
training.  One  very  important  element  in  school  life  is 
that  children  tend  to  imitate  one  another  and  do  as 
others  do,  each  boy  looks  at  the  others  as  well  as  at 
his  teacher,  for  children  are  mostly  gregarious  and 
social  in  their  habits.  The  children  show  spontaneity ; 
you  want  to  cultivate  attention  and  mental  aptitude 
for  instruction ;  if  the  child  be  already  trained  to  sit 
tolerably  still,  while  his  movements  of  hands  and  eyes 
are  controllable,  you  proceed  to  produce  new  brain 
impressions  and  couple  them  with  names,  accompanied 
by  your  directions  which  guide  him.  Show  a  piece  of 
red  paper,  make  him  look  at  it,  and  then  look  at  you 
as  you  pronounce  the  word  "red"  while  he  repeats 
the  word  in  imitation.  He  gains  a  new  impression,  that 
of  the  word,  then  sight  of  the  paper  and  sound  of 
the  word  are  coupled  in  his  brain  by  seeing  and 
hearing  at  the  same  time. 

Make  him  hold  out  his  hand  and  move  the  fingers 
A,  B,  C,  D,  E,  one  at  a  time  in  succession,  and  again 
all  together ;  then,  dropping  his  hand,  look  at  you  while 

»59 


l60  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

you  say  and  he  pronounces  the  word  "five."^  Make 
him  turn  his  eyes  to  five  similar  objects  at  equal  dis- 
tances apart,  then  look  at  you  and  say  "  five  " ;  thus  in 
each  case  you  make  five  impressions  by  muscle  sense 
and  teach  the  numeral.  Put  an  ounce  weight  in  his 
hand,  add  others  up  to  five  ounces,  and  make  him  say 
'*  five " ;  he  feels  by  his  muscles  the  strain  added  by 
each  weight,  and  feels  the  "  five  "  heavier  than  the  one. 

The  impressions  made  have  to  be  associated  with 
terms  of  expression  such  as  describe  what  is  seen, 
felt,  or  heard ;  the  names  of  things  and  of  actions  as 
well  as  of  mental  processes  must  be  learnt ;  for  in- 
stance, "book,"  "colour,"  "weight,"  "addition,"  etc., 
and  these  must  be  clearly  and  separately  appreciated 
by  the  pupil. 

You  may  find  it  best  with  most  children  to  let  them 
get  a  number  of  different  kinds  of  impressions  at  the 
same  time,  as  when  the  child  sees,  feels,  handles  an 
object  while  you  name  it ;  he  will  then  at  some  sub- 
sequent period  have  to  separate  and  classify  these  differ- 
ent impressions  when  learning  to  make  comparisons. 

You  may  think  it  convenient  first  to  demonstrate 
what  you  have  to  show  without  full  explanation,  and 
describe  it  afterwards  fully.  Sometimes,  as  with 
advanced  pupils,  you  may  prefer  to  describe  what 
you  have  to  teach,  and  the  general  principles  to  be 
illustrated,  and  demonstrate  your  facts  or  experiments 

1  See  "Notation  of  Finger  Exercises,"  p.  105. 


DEMONSTRATION   AND  TEACHING  i6l 

afterwards.^  I  have  found  this  the  better  plan  for 
gaining  the  attention  of  a  class  in  chemistry. 

With  a  difficult  child,  however,  I  have  found  it 
necessary  to  produce  impressions  one  at  a  time,  or 
singly,  as  explained  in  Chapter  VIL,  p.  153. 

You  cannot  teach  much  about  length  till  the  pupil 
can  use  numbers ;  you  cannot  usefully  teach  him  to 
measure  lengths  in  inches  till  he  knows  the  inch  as 
a  standard  of  measurement.  I  think  you  will  find 
he  can  compare  lengths  before  he  can  express  them 
in  words,  and  that  is  a  true  mental  act.  Take  a  plain 
card  1x2  and  pin  it  to  the  blackboard  to  be  looked 
at ;  as  you  point  direct  the  pupil  to  look  along  the  top, 
see  that  his  eyes  move,  then  let  him  look  away  and 
again  receive  a  fresh  impression  of  the  side  of  the 
card  looking  from  the  top  corner  downward.  The 
child  will  soon  appreciate  the  different  amount  or 
degree  of  his  impressions  in  the  two  eye-movements; 
later  on,  when  he  has  acquired  a  standard  of  meas- 
urement, he  will  be  able  to  make  comparison  and  ex- 
press the  ratio.  Thus  the  child  becomes  ready  to  learn 
how  to  describe  the  form  of  the  card  by  its  proportion, 
and  to  recognise  its  shape  as  oblong. 

This  kind  of  analysis  as  to  the  brain  action  in  a  pupil 
shows  us  that  in  early  training  sensory  impressions 
must  precede  teaching;  thus:  — 

1  See  Catalogue  of  Examples  in  Natural  History,  "  Mental  Faculty," 
pp.  166-212. 

M 


l62  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

1.  Names  of  the  numerals  in  their  fixed  order,  as 
heard  (auditory  impressions). 

2.  Numbers  in  their  order  of  degree  as  felt  in  move- 
ments, and  numbers  of  weights  (felt  by  muscle  sense). 

3.  Standard  of  measurements,  associated  with  terms 
for  expression. 

4.  Standard  of  weights  and  the  terms  of  expres- 
sion. 

5.  He  must  be  taught  by  practice  to  associate  men- 
tally the  terms  describing  measurement  and  weight 
with  the  impressions  he  has  previously  felt  and  re- 
tained ;  as  one  inch,  two  ounces,  four  ounces,  the 
latter  being  greater. 

6.  The  pupil  must  also  be  taught  the  terms  of  direc- 
tion as  used  in  teaching  connected  with  the  mental 
processes  required  of  him.  He  must  understand  what 
is  meant  by  counting,  adding,  comparing. 

In  a  simple  act  of  comparison  of  the  length  of  two 
lines  at  sight,  the  brain  processes  appear  to  be  as 
follows :  — 

1.  Acts  of  observation,  turning  the  eyes  and  seeing, 
produce  sensory  impressions  by  sight  and  by  muscle 
sense. 

2.  Under  your  direction  to  compare  the  measure- 
ments there  arise  in  the  pupil's  brain :  (a)  the  standard 
of  measure,  and  {d)  the  numerals  as  to  means  of  ex- 
pression. 

3.  A  judgment  is  formed  and  expressed ;  this  is  a 


IMPRESSIONS  AND   COORDINATED   TEACHING        163 

mental  act;  it  differs  from  the  impressions  received, 
and  is  due  to  interaction  among  brain  centres. 

4.  We  see  plainly,  then,  that  the  direction  given 
is  necessary  to  the  formation  of  this  act  of  judg- 
ment. 

It  is  our  business  to  trace  out  and  study  the  impres- 
sions produced  in  good  coordinated  teaching. 

Impressions  on  the  brain  can  be  made  without  the 
use  of  words ;  but  the  words  employed  in  giving  direc- 
tions must  be  carefully  taught.  With  weights  in  either 
hand  the  child  does  feel  the  strain  of  each ;  the  degree 
of  each  impression  is  not  the  same.  He  can  be  taught 
to  express  comparison  in  terms  of  "greater,"  "less"; 
so  with  comparison  and  expression  of  lengths.  Here 
he  compares  real  impressions  received,  and  so  learns 
to  understand  comparison  of  quantity  when  using  fig- 
ures in  arithmetic.  Length  felt  by  finger  movement 
produces  an  impression  on  the  brain ;  such  lengths 
may  be  equal,  or  one  may  be  longer.  It  is  often  very 
interesting  to  study  the  methods  of  teaching  a  very 
dull  pupil.  A  child  mentally  deficient  or  backward  is 
often  so  slow  in  all  mental  processes  that  it  is  easier 
to  follow  these  in  detail  than  in  a  brighter  and  quicker 
child;  the  methods  of  his  intelligence  may  be  almost 
infantile,  and  like  those  of  a  child  only  just  learning 
to  speak ;  but  if  the  dull  boy  has  speech  we  may  follow 
out  the  slow  working  of  his  mind  more  readily  than  in 
the  little  child.     I  took  a  boy,  mentally  defective,  who 


l64  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

had  been  trained  as  I  have  explained,  and  showed  him 
a  horseshoe ;  he  looked  at  it  well.  Without  speaking  I 
guided  his  finger,  moving  it  slowly  and  uniformly  from 
end  to  end  outside  the  curve,  then  let  his  arm  hang 
limp  by  his  side.  Again,  I  guided  his  finger  from  end 
to  end  inside,  and  then  let  his  arm  hang  down.  When 
asked,  "What  can  you  say  ?  "  he  replied,  "  It  is  rough." 
"  What  else  .^ "  He  said  nothing.  Desiring  to  abstract 
in  his  brain  the  feeling  of  the  surface  from  the  length 
of  movement,  I  said,  "  Do  as  I  do,"  moving  my  finger 
in  the  air  slowly,  as  when  following  the  convexity  of 
the  horseshoe,  and  again,  after  an  instant,  moved  as 
when  tracing  the  inside  of  the  shoe.  "  What  can  you 
say.?"  He  replied,  "Round."  "What  length.?"  A 
smile  spread  in  his  face,  and  he  replied,  "  Longer  out- 
side than  in ;  it  is  bent."  Asked,  "  If  I  straighten  it 
out  as  a  straight  bar,  how  long  will  it  be  top  and  bot- 
tom .? "  at  the  same  time  moving  my  finger  as  if  along 
the  top  and  bottom  of  a  bar.  He  replied,  "Same  top 
and  bottom ; "  but  the  pause  during  thought  was  long, 
and  his  features  worked  the  while. 

The  appreciation  of  time  needs  to  be  taught  by  im- 
pressions received.  The  same  boy  had  just  learnt  to 
read  the  time  from  the  clock ;  he  knew  the  sight  and 
names  of  the  figures  on  the  clock  face,  and  could  tell 
the  time  exactly.  He  knew  that  there  are  twenty-four 
hours  in  the  day,  and  sixty  minutes  in  an  hour.  He 
could  not  tell  me  how  long  lessons  lasted  in  the  morn- 


APPRECIATING  TIME  16$ 

ing,  but  said,  "Ten  to  twelve;"  after  being  directed 
to  count,  he  said,  "  Two  hours." 

Asked,  "  How  long  are  you  at  dinner  ?  "  he  said,  "  I 
don't  know."  Wishing  to  produce  some  impressions  of 
time  in  action,  I  made  him  move  his  head,  then  his  hand, 
in  following  my  movements,  first  slowly  but  uniformly, 
then  more  rapidly ;  expression  was  then  easily  elicited, 
"That  is  quick  movement."  After  such  exercises  in 
appreciating  time  he  told  me  that  he  was  in  school  two 
hours  in  the  morning,  and  after  a  pause  added,  and  half 
an  hour  at  dinner,  showing  that  he  understood  what  was 
asked  for.  I  think  that  boy  could  be  taught  impressions 
of  time  as  well  as  the  clock,  and  suggested  to  make  him 
run  half  a  minute,  one  minute,  then  ten  minutes,  etc. 

The  child  of  school  age  should  know  all  the  objects 
in  the  room  and  be  able  to  name  them ;  it  is  also 
necessary  as  school  work  becomes  a  more  serious  mat- 
ter that  definite  ideas  should  be  conveyed  by  what  is 
said,  as  well  as  lines  of  conduct,  such  as :  kindness, 
obedience,  justice,  punctuality,  as  abstract  terms  under- 
stood and  associated  with  modes  of  action. 

At  seven  years  of  age  a  trained  child  should  already 
be  possessed  of  a  vocabulary  available  for  expressing 
thought  and  mental  action,  and  for  giving  descriptions 
and  replies  to  questions.  The  acquisition  of  words  is 
further  necessary  that  he  may  become  amenable  to 
guidance  and  the  words  of  direction  and  teaching  em- 
ployed. .   Language  is  one  of  the  greatest   possessions 


1 66  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

of  man;  training  the  child  in  the  proper  use  of  words 
effects  much  by  imparting  thoughts  to  the  mind. 

I  think  ideas  of  causation  may  be  taught  early.  In 
training  observation,  the  pupil  must  be  practised  in 
noting  the  order  of  events  in  time ;  you  can  teach 
what  happens  and  what  follows  without  giving  expla- 
nations. The  sunlight  comes  upon  the  garden  in  the 
morning,  then  the  flowers  open ;  the  light  reaches  the 
plant  near  the  window,  next  day  the  stem  is  bent 
towards  the  light ;  the  bee  visits  the  flower,  then  gets 
the  honey.  These  events  can  be  shown  or  taught 
without  explanations,  which  cannot  be  understood  by 
young  children ;  but  they  should  not  be  taught  in 
school  that  the  flowers  open  to  meet  the  sun,  that 
the  plant  bends  towards  the  light  because  it  needs  it, 
or  that  the  bee  knows  he  can  get  honey  from  the 
flower.  Sunlight  reaches  the  flowers  before  they 
open ;  unequal  growth  in  the  two  sides  of  the  stem, 
resulting  from  the  action  of  light,  is  the  mechanism 
which  produces  the  bending ;  while  it  has  been  shown 
that  the  colour  of  the  flowers  controls  the  flight  of  the 
bee.^ 

It  is  important  in  teaching  to  train  the  pupils  to 
separate  their  observations  or  brain  impressions,  as  we 
know  this  process  is  necessary  to  classification  and 
comparison.       If   a  number   of   objects    are    seen  and 

1  For  examples,  see  "  Anatomy  of  Movement,"  pp.  78  to  84.  The 
Macmillan  Company. 


COMPARISON  OF  MEASUREMENTS  167 

felt  they  may  be  classed  as  to  weight,  measurement, 
dimensions,  and  proportion,  or  as  to  colour,  etc.  Length 
and  breadth  as  two  measurements  may  be  compared; 
but  size  and  weight  have  no  common  unit  for  com- 
parison. For  this  reason  in  early  training  only  one 
class  of  sensory  impressions  should  be  produced  at  a 
time  as  far  as  possible.  At  first  the  pupil  must  be 
guided  as  to  what  to  compare ;  the  points  for  compari- 
son should  be  arranged  in  classes  and  their  proportion 
studied.  In  other  words,  the  child  must  know  what 
to  look  at  and  be  guided  as  to  what  to  look  for;  he 
is  taught  to  look  at  the  two  ends  of  the  bean  and 
measure  their  distance  apart,  then  to  look  at  the  sides 
and  to  measure  the  breadth,  then  to  make  comparison 
of  his  impressions  of  length  and  breadth,  which  are 
sensory  impressions  by  feeling,  but  not  each  of  the 
same  degree;  the  length  is  greater. 

Throughout  your  teaching  some  amount  of  sponta- 
neous brain  activity,  both  in  movement  of  the  body  and 
in  thought,  should  be  encouraged  and  cultivated,  as 
well  as  controlled.  The  teaching  should  be  stage  by 
stage.  First  for  the  purpose  of  producing  impressions 
on  the  brain,  then  to  connect  and  guide  action  result- 
ing, it  is  useful  to  allow  some  "  question  time  "  for  the 
pupils'  spontaneous  inquiries.  Words  must  be  used  in 
teaching,  and  as  far  as  possible  they  should  be  associ- 
ated with  definite  impressions  and  thoughts.  Geog- 
raphy is  associated  with  the  earth  and  the  conditions 


1 68  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

of  its  surface  all  the  world  over ;  not  only  with  maps 
and  towns.  I  have  spoken  before  of  teaching  from 
maps ;  models  are  also  most  useful.  After  teaching  the 
class  from  the  map  that  London  is  five  hundred  miles 
from  Aberdeen,  a  pupil  may  ask,  "  How  far  is  five  hun- 
dred miles  }  "  Remind  him  how  long  it  took,  and  how 
he  felt,  after  walking  to  a  place  five  miles  away ;  then 
tell  him  to  think  of  walking  five  hundred  miles.  Thus 
thoughts  are  separated  from  the  sensory  impressions 
that  primarily  produce  them,  and  being  still  retained, 
can  be  employed  and  directed  by  the  use  of  words ; 
distance  can  be  appreciated  by  employing  a  fixed  stan- 
dard of  distance,  and  the  comparison  of  numbers. 

In  the  study  of  history  and  geography  it  is  neces- 
sary, from  time  to  time,  to  extend  the  field  of  thought 
and  the  number  of  known  facts  under  consideration,  so 
that  general  views  may  be  formed  of  historical  periods, 
or  of  the  physical  and  climatic  conditions  of  a  country 
—  as  well  as  in  studying  the  causes  of  events  through 
periods  of  time.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  often  desira- 
ble to  make  a  detailed  study  of  a  short  historical 
period  with  a  few  historical  characters ;  or  of  some 
one  mountain  range  or  river  valley ;  or  some  other 
selected  subject  for  detailed  study.  In  preparation 
for  such  mental  processes  the  brain  must  have  many 
impressions  stored  up  and  connected  with  terms  of 
expression,  all  retained  and  ready  for  reactivity  and 
rearrangement  under  the  guidance  of  teaching,  as  re- 


ENLARGING  THE   FIELD   OF  THOUGHT  169 

lations  among  them  are  successively  pointed  out.  The 
mind  should  be  well  stored  with  observations  and  facts, 
which  can  be  studied  in  many  ways. 

Training  for  this  kind  of  mental  aptitude  in  enlarg- 
ing and  limiting  the  field  of  thought  may  be  practised 
when  teaching  the  observation  of  objects  which  pro- 
duce sensory  impressions  under  your  guidance  and 
control.  When  making  the  child  select  one  object 
from  among  many  you  control  his  field  of  observation, 
and  limit  his  thoughts  to  that  one  specimen.  It  is 
perhaps  more  difficult  to  extend  his  range  of  thought 
sufficiently  to  include  what  is  not  within  his  sight.  The 
capacity  to  think  of  many  things  at  one  time,  or,  on 
the  other  hand,  to  limit  thought,  is  an  important  mental 
habit ;  this  is  necessary  for  students  of  natural  history, 
who  must  follow  numerous  examples  when  collecting 
the  experience  required  for  large  conceptions  or  gener- 
alisations. When  you  demonstrate  a  growing  seedling 
plant  as  an  object  in  teaching,  the  pupil  should  at  first 
Umit  his  observation  to  what  he  sees;  looking  at  the 
root,  the  stem,  the  leaves,  and  their  parts ;  then  he  may 
make  comparisons  among  his  observations.  After  this 
the  pupil  must  be  led  to  enlarge  his  subject  of  thought, 
and  include  the  water  as  a  part  of  the  food  material  of 
the  plant,  and  the  light  which  stimulates  and  controls 
the  growth  of  the  plant  structure. 

Again,  when  you  demonstrate  that  light  causes 
bending  of  the  head  of  the  plant,  the  pupil  must  for 


I/O  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

the  time  limit  his  attention  to  the  stem  and  observe 
its  two  sides,  noting  that  the  side  towards  the  light 
is  concave  and  shorter.  Thus  he  learns  that  light 
lessens  the  growth  of  the  stem  on  the  side  that  is 
illuminated.  In  this  way  the  mechanism  of  growth, 
the  food  supply,  the  effects  of  light,  all  become  grad- 
ually familiar  to  the  mind  of  the  pupil ;  further,  he  is 
thus  trained  in  his  brain  action,  and  in  mental  habits 
useful  in  studying  other  subjects.^ 

Memory  or  retentiveness  of  the  directions,  and  the 
means  of  guidance  given  in  teaching,  form  methodi- 
cal modes  of  procedure  and  principles  of  thought. 
We  do  not  teach  logic  to  children,  but  your  teaching 
should  be  according  to  the  principles  of  logic,  con- 
ducted stage  by  stage.  In  the  study  of  both  science 
and  language  the  methodical  order  of  procedure  in 
analysis  and  classification  needs  to  be  firmly  retained 
in  memory ;  either  subject  of  study  may  afford  such 
brain  training  as  gives  mental  aptitude  for  the  other. 
Parsing  is  a  useful  preparation  for  the  systematic 
description  of  natural  objects  ;  some  form  of  schedule 
is  useful  in  teaching  natural  history,  and  practice  in 
employing  it  will  prepare  the  pupil's  faculties  for  the 
grammatical  analysis  of  verbs,  nouns,  and  adjectives. 
Modes  of  guidance,  directions,  the  means  of  expres- 
sion, as  well  as  judgments  previously  formed  and   re- 

1  Examples.  See  "  Mental  Faculty,"  Catalogue  of  a  Museum  of  Natural 
History,  pp.  163-212.     The  Macmillan  Company. 


TRAINING  THE  BRAIN  AND   MIND  171 

tained,  may  be  revived,  then  rearranged,  and  thus  lead 
to  the  acquisition  of  fresh  knowledge ;  such  modes  of 
mental  action  are  called  into  play  in  teaching  geom- 
etry. 

The  methods  of  education  should  be  coordinated; 
the  modes  of  brain  action  employed  in  analysing 
words  may  be  previously  exercised  in  analysing  ob- 
jects; estimation  of  proportional  weights  felt  in  the 
hands  prepares  the  way  for  understanding  proportion 
as  expressed  by  lines  or  figures ;  the  habit  of  observ- 
ing each  part  of  an  object  and  then  comparing  them 
leads  to  observing  proportion  in  growth,  and  clears  the 
way  for  understanding  the  effects  of  light,  heat,  and 
gravitation  as  they  respectively  affect  the  growth  of 
plants. 

Thus,  after  early  training  in  cultivation  of  the  gen- 
eral characters  of  brain  action  described  in  Chapter 
II.,  mental  training  in  school  may  proceed  to  exercise 
choice  and  discrimination.  The  faculty  of  observation 
and  separation  of  qualities  observed  in  objects,  fol- 
lowed by  their  analysis  and  classification,  prepares  the 
way  for  the  formation  of  generalisations  which  form 
knowledge  of  wide  application. 

Habits  of  mental  analysis  may  be  trained  by  accu- 
racy in  methodical  observation ;  let  the  pupil  begin 
early  to  look  at  one  thing  at  a  time,  then  at  its 
parts,  and  later  at  the  relations  of  many  things  and 
events  to   one   another.     This    will    exercise    some   of 


172 


THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 


the  modes  of  brain  action  that  are  employed  in  the 
analysis  of  languages  ;  I  have  found  through  an  ex- 
perience of  many  years,  that  students  well  educated 
in  languages  are  more  easily  trained  than  others  as 
observers  in  science  and  in  medicine. 

A  schedule  may  be  used  for  the  purpose  of  direct- 
ing the  pupil  when  studying  natural  history. 


Sensory  impressions. 

Observation  of  the  still 

object. 

Mental  action. 

Mental  comparison 

of:- 

Enlarging  field  of 
thought  and  obser- 
vation of  external 
agents. 

Observing  and  study- 
ing growth  and  action 
in  the  living  object. 

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This  schedule  directs  the  pupil  to  observe  in  a 
methodical  manner  so  that  he  may  first  receive  sen- 
sory impressions  by  sight  and  feeling  in  his  observa- 
tions. Next,  processes  of  thought  and  the  methodical 
interaction  of  the  impressions  received  are  guided, 
leading  to  mental  comparison.  The  field  of  thought 
and  observation  is  now  extended,  by  the  directions  to 
include  the  conditions  around  and  the  action  of  ex- 
ternal agents.  Finally,  the  schedule  directs  observ- 
ing and  studying  living    action    under   the    effects    of 


NATURAL   HISTORY 


173 


the  environment,  and  exercises  all  the  mental  powers 
of  the  pupil. 

Space  will  not  allow  me  to  enter  into  the  details 
of  systematic  teaching  here.  I  present  this  plan  of 
schedule  in  illustration  of  modes  of  study  that  I  have 
followed,  and  which  you  may  use  in  child-study.^ 

A  few  examples  will  be  given  :  — 

Specimen  I.  Peas  are  inanimate  or  still  objects ;  let 
the  pupil  select  one,  then  measure  it  every  way  with 
his  fingers  and  feel  its  weight.  All  measurements 
are  the  same,  it  presents  no  separate  parts. 

Specimen  II.  Take  a  French  bean,  there  are  two 
ends,  two  surfaces,  and  the  margin ;  it  is  longer  than 
broad,  and  broader  than  thick,  thus  it  is  longer  than 
thick.     It  is  heavier  than  a  pea. 

Specimen  III.  A  seedling  pea  sprouted  in  damp 
moss ;  it  has  grown  and  shows  new  parts.  There  is 
a  seed  case,  and  inside  there  are  two  cotyledons  ;  also 
the  root  and  the  stem.  Measurement  and  compari- 
son show  the  root  longer  than  the  stem,  the  cotyle- 
dons have  not  grown;  the  stem  is  arched,  the  con- 
cave side  is  shorter. 

1  See  author's  "  Mental  Faculty."    The  Macmillan  Company. 


CHAPTER   IX 

The  Nerve  Centres  in   Infancy,  School  Life,  and 
Adolescence  ;  their  Health  and  Training 

The  nerve  system  of  the  child  is  growing  rapidly 
during  the  early  years.  Much  depends  upon  the  care 
taken  to  nourish  the  brain  and  cultivate  it  during  the 
periods  of  development,  as  they  pass  from  stage  to 
stage,  through  infancy  and  childhood  up  to  adolescence. 
Remember  always  that  the  brain  grows  with  the  body, 
the  well-being  of  the  child  depends  on  each,  the  body 
and  the  brain  react  upon  one  another  in  promoting 
growth  and  healthiness ;  while  the  brain  health  may  be 
cultivated  through  the  senses  by  controlling  the  influ- 
ences that  act  upon  the  child  from  without.  The  brain 
is  not  only  growing,  it  develops  as  a  leaf  bud  develops ; 
new  parts  are  forming,  it  receives  many  impressions 
which  effect  results  in  building  up  its  structure  and 
organisation.  Whether  at  home,  or  in  the  school,  or  in 
the  streets,  traces  of  the  brain  activities  effected 
through  the  hours  of  each  day  are  in  part  retained ;  and 
the  education  received  —  good  or  bad  —  lays  a  founda- 
tion for  the  future  response  of  the  brain  under  various 
circumstances. 

In  healthy  infancy  spontaneity  and  frequent  spread- 

1/4 


SPONTANEITY  AND   PLAY  1 75 

ing  movements,  representing  activity  in  the  brain,  are 
to  be  encouraged  by  at  times  playing  with  the  baby. 
Watch  the  growth  of  the  head  and  the  soft  fontanelle, 
where  you  feel  the  brain  pulsating  with  each  beat  of 
the  heart ;  if  this  fails  then  there  is  something  wrong 
with  the  child's  health,  due  to  defective  feeding,  mis- 
management, or  other  cause,  and  the  brain  becomes  less 
active  in  growth  and  movements.  Brain  healthiness  is 
promoted  by  encouraging  its  natural  modes  of  activity, 
and  equally  by  such  organised  occupations  of  children 
as  cause  a  healthy  interaction  among  the  nerve  centres. 
When  the  child  enters  school  there  is  a  great  change  in 
his  environment.  It  becomes  necessary  to  train  the 
child  that  he  may  learn,  also  to  produce  capacity  for 
coordinated  action,  that  under  control  impressions  may 
be  produced,  retained,  and  repeated  in  due  order. 
Speech  and  retentiveness  must  be  cultivated.  Allow 
the  child  ample  time  for  spontaneous  play.  Children 
are  naturally  sociable  and  like  one  another's  society ; 
they  also  like  to  be  guided,  if  it  is  done  wisely ;  the 
child  gets  tired  of  being  left  too  much  alone. 

Do  not  expect  the  child  to  do  more  either  in  the  kind 
or  in  the  quantity  of  work  than  his  present  capacity 
allows ;  you  should  therefore  analyse  the  occupations 
and  the  methods  of  teaching  you  propose  to  use,  so  as 
to  proceed  stage  by  stage  with  your  training  and  teach- 
ing. Take  as  an  example  School  Shop,  from  an  educa- 
tional point  of  view  :  do  not  expect  the  pupil  to  know 


176  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHI^D 

how  to  buy  with  real  money  till  he  knows  tb  3  coins  and 
understands  that  they  have  a  real  value  He  should 
learn  about  money  stage  by  stage ;  for  th.s  purpose  he  ^ 
must  be  trained  to  look  at  and  name  ;olours,  to  feel 
and  compare  weights,  to  measure  size  with  his  fingers, 
and  to  feel  the  margins  and  the  surface  of  the  coins  as 
well  as  to  look  at  them.  He  must  learn  to  separate 
what  he  sees  from  what  he  feels,  and  to  distinguish 
weight  from  size.  It  is  not  easy  at  first  to  make  a 
child  understand  that  a  parcel  containing  a  pound  of 
tea  weighs  as  much  as  a  pound  weight  of  iron  that  he 
feels  in  his  hand ;  he  gains  the  knowledge  by  experi- 
ence, perhaps  verbal  explanations  do  not  help  him 
greatly.  Much  previous  training  in  the  general  charac- 
ters of  brain  action  is  needed  here  to  prepare  the  child 
for  mental  processes  acting  regularly,  without  disorder 
or  extra  work  other  than  that  called  for  by  the  guidance 
of  your  directions ;  if  previous  brain  training  has  been 
neglected,  mental  confusion  (not  understanding)  is  Ukely 
soon  to  weary  his  brain. 

We  all  want  our  mental  processes  to  be  accurate,  and 
the  methods  of  teaching  should  be  exact,  but  not  too 
mechanical.  Let  there  be  a  plan  of  procedure  ;  but  while 
training  the  brain  through  sensory  impressions,  whether 
for  movements,  the  use  of  words,  or  in  comparing  and 
thinking,  let  there  be  some  opportunity  the  while  for 
spontaneous  action  and  thought.  A  little  extra  move- 
ment, or  a  few  extra  thoughts  not  quite  under  guidance. 


MENTAL  APTITUDE 


177 


may  do  no  harm,  but  lead  to  a  better  understanding ; 
they  need  not  always  be  suppressed ;  they  are  like 
the  spreading  area  of  facial  expression  of  intelligence, 
gentle  and  undefinable,  that  may  be  seen  when  a 
question  is  asked  and  understood,  pleasing  to  look  at, 
and  it  may  be  more  indicative  of  attention  and  ap- 
preciation than  any  response  in  words.  Thus,  while 
training  the  brain  by  sensory  impressions  for  modes  of 
motor  action,  use  of  words,  etc.,  let  there  be  some  op- 
portunities for  spontaneous  action  of  the  nerve  centres. 
Children  will  talk  at  home  of  their  difficulties  in  class, 
the  points  they  do  not  understand,  and  what  they  say 
was  not  explained  to  them,  saying  how  they  wanted 
to  ask  questions ;  sometimes  the  pupils  criticise  the 
teacher  and  the  teaching,  and  complain  that  they  are 
told  "they  ought  to  understand."  It  would  be  interest- 
ing if  intelligent  persons  could  describe  their  own  early 
difficulties  and  analyse  them,  so  as  to  see  what  was 
lacking ;  whether  their  teacher  tried  to  connect  ideas 
that  did  not  exist  in  their  heads,  or  used  words  that 
had  no  meaning  to  them  at  the  time. 

Mental  aptitude,  or  the  potentiahties  for  mental 
training,  are  indicated  in  a  child  in  whom  we  observe 
spontaneity  of  action,  easily  controlled  through  the 
senses  and  regulated  by  impressions  received;  spon- 
taneity of  movement,  liveliness  in  facial  expression, 
talkativeness,  with  capacity  to  follow  organised  games 
and  occupations,  are  all  hopeful  signs. 

N 


178  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

Spontaneous  brain  action  is  the  basis  of  mental 
power.  In  the  infant  at  birth,  as  in  the  adult  during 
quiescent  states,  the  respiratory  movements  occur  in 
a  uniform  series.  While  the  child  is  awake  spontane- 
ous movements  are  seen  in  the  limbs,  especially  in 
the  small  parts,  the  fingers  and  toes,  but  they  occur 
in  no  apparent  order,  and  are  not  uniform  in  char- 
acter ;  further,  they  are  not  controlled  by  the  senses. 
Spreading  area  of  brain  action  is  seen  in  movements 
when  the  child  cries.  When  three  months  old  some 
control  of  these  movements  may  be  seen  as  the  child 
is  impressed  by  sight  or  sound ;  this  is  the  earliest 
manifestation  of  potentiality  for  mental  action ;  still, 
there  is  no  delayed  expression  of  impressions  received 
and  no  act  of  choice  is  observed. 

At  birth  no  signs  of  mental  attention  are  seen ; 
the  infant  shows  many  spontaneous  movements  corre- 
sponding to  spontaneous  action  in  many  brain  centres, 
but  these  are  not  controllable  through  the  senses. 
Later  in  the  evolution  of  the  infant  this  spontaneity 
may  be  momentarily  arrested  by  impressions  received 
through  the  organs  of  sense.  Show  the  infant  a 
coloured  object  and  coordinated  action  follows ;  spon- 
taneity of  movement  is  quelled  for  a  few  seconds, 
then  the  object  is  grasped  by  a  prehensile  action. 
During  the  period  of  quiescence  there  is  said  to  be 
an  act  of  attention  followed  by  adapted  action.  The 
brain  processes  during   the   quiescence   appear   to   be 


THE  GROWI^H   OF  ATTENTION  179 

readjustments  of  the  brain  centres  which  are  ex- 
pressed by  the  adapted  act  of  prehension.  The  physi- 
ologist cannot  admit  that  the  will  thus  arranges  the 
brain ;  this  act  of  attention  results  from  the  sight  of 
the  object.  The  brain  conditions  necessary  to  an  act 
of  attention  are  (i)  healthiness  in  the  general  char- 
acters of  the  brain,  (2)  spontaneity,  and  (3)  control  of 
the  brain  by  impressions  through  the  senses,  as  shown 
by  inhibition  and  the  coordinated  action  following. 
Attention,  as  a  physiological  process,  is  inferred  to 
be  action  among  the  brain  centres,  and  may  occur 
with  or  without  subsequent  expression. 

The  school  child  must  be  tolerably  quiet  before  he 
will  think  connectedly.  A  pause  for  thought  is  re- 
quired in  thinking  over  the  answer  to  a  question ; 
there  may  be  an  expression  indicating  understanding 
without  any  verbal  response.  Sometimes  attention  is 
best  arrested  by  sight  only ;  other  children  may  be 
more  easily  impressed  by  hearing  the  spoken  word. 

In  cultivating  the  faculty  of  attention  we  need 
spontaneity  in  the  brain  as  the  foundation  of  mental 
power;  we  must  produce  some  impression  on  the 
brain,  and  for  the  sake  of  exactness  and  simplicity 
in  training  a  slight  impression  through  one  sense 
organ  only  is  at  first  advisable  ;  this  is  especially  the 
case  with  difficult  children.  The  impress  must  be 
distinctly  produced  before  a  full  act  of  attention  can 
follow ;   the  object  must  be  looked  at   for  some   sec- 


l8o  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

onds  before  it  is  completely  seen,  as,  for  example, 
the  figure  in  a  proposition  of  Euclid ;  hence,  irregular 
eye-movements  may  interfere  with  attention.  (See 
Chapter  II.,  p.  33.)  An  excess  of  spontaneous  brain 
action  and  any  spreading  area  of  activity,  such  as 
corresponds  to  a  number  of  disconnected  thoughts, 
may  be  indicated  by  a  number  of  extra  movements, 
or  fidgeting,  with  vague  disjointed  response  in  place 
of  the  signs  of  attention.  This  is  often  observable 
with  the  signs  of  fatigue  in  restless  movements  of 
the  eyes,  the  fingers,  and  the  feet. 

The  subject  of  mental  fatigue  has  been  investigated 
by  many  accurate  observers  on  experimental  lines. 
At  one  period  a  great  deal  was  said  on  **  over 
pressure,"  sometimes,  I  venture  to  think,  without  suf- 
ficient analysis  of  the  many  causes  which  may  pro- 
duce exhaustion.  Weariness  may  be  due  to  many 
circumstances;  much  might  be  said  as  to  the  effects 
of  muscular  exercise,  ventilation,  diet,  conditions  of 
the  blood  and  of  the  circulation,  etc.  (See  Chap- 
ter VI.,  p.  120.)  But  I  wish  here  to  keep  as  closely  as 
possible  to  the  consideration  of  brain  conditions  lead- 
ing to  fatigue  and  exhaustion.  The  signs  of  brain 
fatigue  are  easily  observable  in  the  movement  and 
balance  of  the  parts  of  the  body,  especially  as  seen 
in  the  face,  the  eyes,  and  in  finger  action.  When 
the  brain  is  fatigued,  the  force  expended  in  move- 
ments  is    small  in  amount,   and  the  total   number   of 


BRAIN   FATIGUE  l8l 

movements  may  be  lessened ;  while  action  in  the 
child  is  less  easily  and  regularly  controlled  through 
the  senses.  At  the  same  time  a  certain  number  of 
irregular  movements,  spontaneous,  or  not  stimulated 
by  your  directions,  may  occur,  suggesting  that  the 
fatigued  child  is  reduced  to  a  more  childish  condi- 
tion of  spontaneity  than  when  his  brain  is  fresh  and 
healthy  ;  thus  the  eyes  may  often  move  in  the  hori- 
zontal direction  uncontrolled  by  sight  or  sound,  or 
the  fingers  may  twitch  as  he  holds  his  pen,  or  when 
the  hands  are  held  out  and  he  fidgets  without  doing 
his  work.  Loss  of  force  or  nerve  tone  is  indicated 
by  the  lessening  of  facial  expression,  fulness  or  baggi- 
ness  under  the  eyes,  to  which  may  be  added  spon- 
taneous knitting  of  the  eyebrows  (corrugation).  The 
hands  when  held  out  free  in  front  are  usually  at  an 
unequal  level  and  the  fingers  droop,  while  the  head 
may  drop  to  one  side  and  the  shoulders  be  unequally 
balanced.  In  such  a  child  all  movement  in  response 
is  slow  and  inaccurate,  as  well  as  the  speech  and  the 
signs  of  mental  action. 

The  chief  means  of  preventing  exhaustion  lie  in  the 
early  recognition  of  the  signs  of  fatigue.  The  indica- 
tions of  commencing  brain  fatigue  may  appear,  either 
in  slowness  and  inaccuracy  of  mental  response,  or  in 
the  physical  signs  seen  in  the  face  and  in  movements 
as  described.  It  is  quite  possible  for  a  trained  pupil 
showing  considerable  signs  of  brain  fatigue  to  continue 


1 82  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

good  mental  work,  —  as,  for  instance,  during  an  ex- 
amination,  —  but  there  is  peril  in  prolonged  periods 
of  brain  fatigue  without  recreation.  I  will  not  say 
that  fatigue  is  always  to  be  avoided ;  but  the  day's 
fatigue  should  be  recruited  by  the  night's  rest. 

The  term  mental  fatigue  is  used  to  express  the 
amount  of  brain  energy  spent  in  mental  processes. 
Fatigue  results  from  work  done  among  the  brain  cells ; 
thus,  if  the  pupil  hears,  understands,  and  retains  im- 
pressions from  your  teaching,  or  when  he  works  out 
a  sum  or  writes  an  essay,  work  is  performed  by  the 
brain  centres  as  each  mental  act  is  performed.  The 
physiological  energy  spent  among  the  nerve  cells  can- 
not be  estimated  by  the  value  which  we,  as  educated 
persons,  put  upon  the  usefulness  of  the  action. 

It  may  be  doubted  whether  we  can  determine  the 
quantity  of  mental  action  occurring  in  a  given  time, 
or  whether  any  unit  for  quantitative  comparison  exists ; 
this  cannot  be  represented  by  the  value  of  the  work 
done.  It  is  only  the  portion  of  mental  action  which  is 
expressed  that  we  can  estimate  quantitatively,  not  the 
quantity  of  brain  action ;  many  thoughts  may  arise 
and  be  inhibited  in  the  brain  and  so  not  expressed  ; 
in  some  difficult  processes  of  thinking  this  occurs  to  a 
large  extent,  especially  in  original  work  and  in  thinking 
out  cause  and  effect,  or  in  seeking  illustrative  exam- 
ples. The  time  and  the  order  of  succession  and  coup- 
ling of  mental  acts  has  more  to  do  with  the  character 


MENTAL  EXHAUSTION  1 83 

of  mental  processes  than  the  quantity  of  brain  energy 
expended. 

Thoughts  of  real  value,  like  actions,  depend  on  their 
coordination  by  circumstances,  not  upon  the  degree  of 
brain  work  expended.  Estimation  of  the  value  of  in- 
tellectual acts  differs  in  the  child  and  adult  so  greatly 
as  to  make  comparison  difficult ;  they  may,  however, 
be  more  easily  contrasted ;  in  the  child  the  impressions 
retained  are  less  exact  than  in  the  adult,  while  spon- 
taneity is  more  abundant,  and  may  interfere  with  any 
established  order  of  thoughts.  Spontaneous  thoughts 
mean  brain  work  and  add  to  mental  fatigue.  Effective 
training  tends  to  lessen  fatigue  and  strengthens  the 
brain  for  future  work.  Children  who  have  but  few 
established  modes  of  thought,  but  many  spontaneous 
thinkings,  may  become  exhausted  by  their  own  im- 
aginations ;  this  not  uncommonly  occurs  with  lonely, 
unoccupied  children. 

A  boy  who  has  not  acquired  the  habit  of  keeping 
a  memorandum  of  the  lessons  to  be  prepared  at  home 
is  worried  from  having  forgotten  some  of  the  books 
wanted;  his  master  does  not  trouble  his  memory,  but 
keeps  a  memorandum  of  the  class  subjects  for  each 
day.  The  boy  may  think  the  most  about  the  lessons, 
but  the  master  is  more  methodical,  and  gives  the  pupil 
an  imposition  to  quicken  his  memory.  I  think  the 
girls  in  English  high  schools  have  too  many  written- 
out  exercises  to  do  at  home. 


1 84  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

From  the  point  of  view  of  mental  hygiene,  attention 
and  mental  confusion  may  be  contrasted,  together  with 
the  means  of  cultivating  the  former  and  avoiding  the 
latter. 

In  making  observations  for  the  purpose  of  deter- 
mining the  modes  of  brain  action  corresponding  to  a 
mental  act  of  attention,  we  must  directly  observe  the 
motor  expressions  in  the  child. 

Spontaneous  movement  is  equally  characteristic  of 
young  animals  and  young  children.  A  dog  going  out 
for  a  walk  with  his  master  evinces  his  joy  in  spon- 
taneity by  running  in  the  field  and  making  ever  wider 
circles  or  ellipses  ;  he  may  return  to  his  master  and 
then  recommence  his  career,  till,  seeing  a  cow,  he  barks 
at  her,  but  is  again  recalled  by  his  master's  voice ; 
at  length  he  runs  at  the  cow  and  teases  her. 

Spontaneous  action  is  here  the  primary  mode  of 
energy  displayed,  it  becomes  controlled  and  coordinated 
partly  by  the  master's  voice,  in  part  by  sight  of  the  cow; 
these  controlling  forces  act  in  different  proportion. 

Similar  spontaneous  action  in  the  cellular  structure 
of  plants  produces  those  organised  movements  which 
minister  to  the  needs  of  seedlings.  Charles  Darwin  has 
described  the  movements  of  the  root  of  a  seedling 
wandering  in  ellipses,  though  slowly  as  compared  with 
spontaneous  movement  in  a  child.  If  the  root  presses 
against  a  stone  the  apex  moves  away  from  the  ob- 
struction, but  bends  towards  any  crevice  in  the  soil  and 


MENTAL   CONFUSION  1 85 

into  the  dampest  parts.  The  Httle  root  is  constantly 
moving,  and  is  sensitive  to  touch  and  to  dampness, 
which  guide  its  action  to  its  advantage  by  controlUng 
spontaneous  action  in  its  cell  growth.  (See  Darwin  on 
"  Movements  of  Plants,"  pp.  420,  427.) 

The  modes  of  brain  action  may  not  be  sufficiently 
well  balanced,  or  proportioned,  at  the  stage  of  evolu- 
tion of  the  child,  to  allow  of  uniform  or  prolonged 
attention.  A  pupil  may  at  times  show  marked  mental 
confusion  and  make  an  absurd  reply  to  a  question. 
This  may  arise  from  several  causes. 

1.  When  a  spreading  area  of  spontaneous  action  in 
the  brain  is  indicated  by  fidgeting  while  the  child  turns 
his  head  and  his  fingers  twitch,  he  may  ejaculate  words 
irrelevant  to  your  question ;  yet  thoughts  may  be  aris- 
ing, though  not  under  your  direction  ;  still,  all  thinkings 
are  of  value.  Such  spreading  and  spontaneous  brain 
action  should  not  be  entirely  suppressed,  but  show  that 
further  training  is  needed. 

2.  Eye-movements  must  be  educated  in  order  that 
the  impressions  received  by  the  brain  may  be  exact. 
When  a  child  is  working  an  addition  sum,  as  the  eyes 
move  to  successive  figures  in  a  column  an  extra  or  lat- 
eral eye-movement  may  bring  into  view  the  wrong  fig- 
ure and  lead  to  confusion.  (Training  eye-movements, 
see  Chapter  VII.,  p.  145.) 

3.  In  reading,  eye-movements  may  similarly  bring 
the  wrong  line  into  view. 


1 86  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

4.  In  writing,  the  pupil  may  copy  the  line  above  in 
place  of  continuing  his  exercise. 

5.  Confusion  may  arise  from  the  question  being 
only  partially  heard,  as  from  deafness ;  if  the  child  be 
also  short  sighted  his  difficulties  are  greatly  increased 
in  receiving  teaching  by  demonstration. 

6.  Rapid  action  of  the  heart  with  a  quick  pulse  is 
common  in  nervous  children,  and  may  be  accompanied 
by  other  conditions  of  importance  to  health.  Such  dis- 
turbance of  the  circulation  may  produce  marked  mental 
confusion.^ 

7.  Sometimes  an  answer  is  irrelevant  to  the  ques- 
tion put,  yet  contains  the  reply  to  a  former  question, 
as  to  which  a  train  of  thought  has  continued.  Such 
delayed  expression  of  thought  is  not  a  mindless  condi- 
tion, but  shows  an  untrained  mode  of  mental  action. 
Brain  training  may  do  much  to  prevent  mental  confu- 
sion and  increase  the  power  of  attention. 

Memory  depends  upon  reactivity  of  the  impressions 
previously  made  upon  the  brain,  these  impressions  re- 
turning in  activity  as  a  series  in  the  same  order  as  that 
in  which  they  were  produced  originally.  Thus,  the 
child,  when  directed  to  do  so,  repeats  the  numerals  in 
their  order  of  succession  as  previously  taught.  This 
—  as  a  matter  of  physiological  action  —  depends  upon 
the  (cohesion)  exactness  of  the  impressions  retained, 
and  upon  the  adhesion  of   those  impressions,   so   that 

References  34,  3$. 


FIXED   MENTAL  IMPRESSIONS  1 87 

energy  flows  along  the  prearranged  nerve  paths  from 
the  brain  centre  stimulated  by  your  direction  to  re- 
peat the  lesson,  to  those  centres  which  were  im- 
pressed in  succession  by  previous  teaching.  Such 
forms  of  speech  and  of  memory  remind  us  of  the  exact 
reproduction  of  a  speech  on  a  phonograph,  where  the 
dents  made  on  the  wax  are  retained,  and  reproduce  in 
their  former  order  the  vibrations  causing  sound,  without 
vibration  or  adaptability  —  no  interaction  occurs  among 
the  impressions  on  the  wax. 

Overtaxing  the  memory  and  producing  too  many 
fixed  impressions  may  to  a  certain  extent  lessen  mental 
adaptability,  and  while  fixing  a  certain  number  of  ideas 
limit  free  mental  power.  The  same  thing  is  seen  in  re- 
gard to  movements  ;  military  drill  produces  precision 
and  quickness  for  some  kinds  of  action,  rather  than 
adaptiveness  and  grace  of  movement  under  varying 
circumstances. 

A  boy  when  riding  is  thrown  from  his  horse;  a  per- 
manent mental  impression  remains,  and  ever  after  re- 
curs at  the  sight  of  his  saddle-horse  :  such  impression 
did  not  occur  on  commencing  his  ride  before  the  acci- 
dent.    This  exemplifies  a  very  firm  act  of  the  memory. 

A  strong  mental  impression  may  be  made  without  any 
accompanying  outward  expression  at  the  time.  Take 
an  example  :  a  man  is  told  that  he  cannot  live  another 
year  on  account  of  some  disease.  He  may  sit  quite 
still  as  he  is  told  this  and  make  no  reply,  but  the  care- 


1 88  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

f ul  observer  may  see  his  face  grow  pale,  the  respirations 
quickened  and  the  brows  knit,  possibly  with  some  de- 
pression of  the  angles  of  the  mouth  at  the  thought  of 
mental  distress  and  suffering  to  come.  His  subsequent 
acts,  rather  than  his  present  expression,  will  indicate  the 
strength  of  the  impression  made. 

Impressionability  is  not  quite  the  same  thing  as  mem- 
ory. A  reflex  action  results  from  some  external  stim- 
ulus, an  impression  is  produced  at  the  moment,  but  this 
is  not  necessarily  retained.  A  sudden  flash  of  light 
causes  reflex  contraction  of  the  pupil  and  closure  of 
the  eyelids ;  but  the  impression  is  not  registered  in 
the  brain  and  remembered. 

At  least  two  different  kinds  of  mental  activity  are 
called  ''memory":  (i)  the  simple  reception  and  re- 
tention of  an  impression,  almost  without  any  interac- 
tion among  brain  centres  resulting ;  (2)  a  more  active 
process  in  the  brain  involving  both  the  retention  of 
impressions  and  their  interaction,  while  certain  es- 
tablished modes  of  brain  action  supervene  correspond- 
ing to  fixed  principles  and  directions  of  thought.  This 
implies  much  the  same  kind  of  mental  action  as  what 
is  called  "adhesiveness"  by  Prof.  A.  Bain.  In  the 
simplest  act  of  memory  a  sensory  impress  produces 
a  simple  reflex  mechanism ;  a  question  is  asked,  the 
answer  as  formerly  taught  is  repeated ;  the  object  is 
seen,  then  named.     This  is  often  called  verbal  memory. 

This  simple  form  of  memory  as  a  mode  of  brain 


CULTIVATION   OF  MEMORY  1 89 

action  may  be  cultivated  in  physical  exercises  in  imi- 
tation of  your  movements;  the  series  is  learned  by  prac- 
tice, and  soon  becomes  repeated  with  exactness.  (See 
Chapter  VII.)  In  such  training  it  is  of  course  neces- 
sary to  use  the  same  precision  and  accuracy  in  the 
order  of  repetition  as  you  would  employ  in  teaching 
by  words.  This  mode  of  memory  differs  from  those 
required  in  advanced  mental  processes,  where  it  is 
necessary  to  call  up  fixed  modes  of  brain  action  previ- 
ously established,  and  arrange  impressions  received 
by  observation  on  a  fixed  plan.  Thus  the  use  of  the 
numerals  and  the  methods  of  counting  being  estab- 
lished among  the  acquired  brain  processes,  compari- 
sons may  be  made  and  proportions  described  by  the 
use  of  numbers.  Objects  may  be  classed  according 
to  the  number  of  their  parts  and  as  to  their  propor- 
tions after  the  methods  used  in  systematic  botany.^ 

The  higher  forms  of  memory  for  trains  of  thought 
and  reasoning  demand,  among  other  qualities,  the 
simpler  forms  of  memory. 

Different  modes  of  cultivating  memory  are  required 
according  to  the  pupil's  stage  of  mental  development ; 
sometimes  simple  means  must  be  used  for  implant- 
ing knowledge  of  the  facts  learned,  while  others  in- 
crease the  natural  retention  and  adhesiveness  of  brain 
impressions  and  lead  to  memory  for  associated  ideas, 
or,  as  we  may  say,  a  series  of  mental  acts.     Thus  the 

^  See  Catalogue  of  Examples,  "  Mental  Faculty,"  pp.  163-212. 


190 


THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 


mental  power  of  memory  may  be  acquired  both  to 
retain  impressions  in  the  brain,  and  also  to  compare 
these  memories  one  with  another,  and  class  them  ac- 
cording to  their  resemblances  and  differences.  The 
mental  processes  of  analysis  and  analogy  may  then 
be  performed  among  impressions  remembered. 

In  social  life,  faces  are  remembered  and  associated 
with  a  conversation ;  a  boy  seeing  his  master  may 
remember  some  forgotten  duty ;  the  surgeon  recog- 
nises a  patient  by  the  scar  left  after  operation,  and 
recalls  all  the  details  of  the  case.  Some  persons  can 
remember  trains  of  argument  better  than  isolated 
facts  and  names. 

Defect  of  memory  or  forgetfulness  may  be  due  to 
the  causes  of  mental  confusion.  The  original  im- 
pressions may  not  have  been  sufficiently  clear  and 
exact ;  then  it  may  be  well  in  training  to  produce 
analogous  impressions  through  the  eye,  the  ear,  and 
by  muscle  sense.  Thus  each  numeral  may  be  taught 
as  a  word  separately,  while  the  child  looking  at  your 
face  imitates  your  pronunciation  ;  then  appreciation 
of  number  may  be  taught  by  seeing  together  a  number 
of  objects  corresponding  to  the  numeral,  as  beads 
upon  a  frame ;  and  again  by  hand  movements  in 
pointing  with  the  finger,  or  by  eye-movements  as  in 
counting  at  sight  several  objects  placed  some  distance 
apart.  After  this  the  numerals  may  be  repeated  in 
order  and  thus  connected  as  a  series. 


REVERSION  AND   CHILDISHNESS  191 

Reversion  to  childish  states  of  brain  and  break- 
down in  mental  health  under  stress  of  circumstances 
may  produce  grave  mental  disabilities.^  The  general 
characters  of  the  brain  are  very  different  in  the  degree 
of  their  development  in  infancy  and  at  ten  years  of 
age ;  during  infancy  spontaneity  in  movement  is  the 
chief  characteristic.  This  mode  of  brain  action  be- 
comes gradually  organised  under  good  training  so  that 
its  functions  are  adapted  by  impressions  through  the 
senses.  In  the  adult,  spontaneity  of  the  brain  cen- 
tres during  health  is  expressed  rather  in  thoughts 
than  in  movements,  and  much  of  the  motor  action 
is  seen  in  small  movements,  well  controlled ;  as  in 
the  tongue  and  face  in  speaking,  and  the  fingers  in 
writing,  each  expressing  mental  action.  If  we  look 
at  examples  in  the  stages  of  infancy,  early  youth, 
and  full  development,  we  should  find  movement  dis- 
played at  each  successive  stage,  but  with  some  differ- 
ences in  the  proportion  of  motor  action  to  the  amount 
of  brain  energy  expended  in  the  process  of  thought  (psy- 
chosis) ;  this  proportion  represents  an  interesting  and 
important  change  of  function  during  brain  evolution. 

Reversion  among  animals  and  plants  is  the  ten- 
dency sometimes  manifested  to  assume  the  modes  of 
growth  or  habits  of  some  ancestor ;  such  reversions 
are  especially  apt  to  occur  under  conditions  of  low 
health  and  diminished  nutrition. 

1  Reference  49. 


192  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

In  school  children  and  in  adults  reversion  to  a 
"  childish  condition  "  is  not  uncommon.  After  mental 
fatigue  and  when  needing  food,  a  child  may  become 
almost  infantile  in  his  peevishness  and  irritability  with 
want  of  capacity  for  control ;  his  utterances  are  dis- 
jointed, his  movements  fidgety,  and  sometimes  hardly 
enough  under  control  even  to  take  his  meal.  (See  Chap- 
ter v.,  p.  loi.)  The  child  presents  much  spontaneous 
incoordinated  movement  like  a  baby,  and  is  not  guided 
by  his  surroundings,  and  therefore  is  inharmonious  with 
his  environment.  Rest,  feeding,  and  sleep  recreate  his 
brain  power  and  restore  a  placid  and  active  mental 
status. 

Reversion  occurs  in  mental  action  when  a  former 
thought  or  series  of  thoughts  arises;  old  thoughts 
revert  to  activity  in  dreams,  in  delirium,  as  wild 
thoughts  which  rush  through  the  brain  in  times  of 
weakness.  Return  of  thoughts  depends  upon  the  reac- 
tivity of  certain  brain  centres;  the  process  of  recalling 
thoughts  has  been  considered  in  speaking  of  voluntary 
power. 

The  reactivity  of  past  thoughts  is  by  no  means  sim- 
ply due  to  spontaneous  action  in  the  brain.  Sight  of 
certain  objects,  old  letters,  written  words,  and  books 
may  revive  former  thoughts,  long  absent. 

Thoughts  altogether  spontaneous  resemble  the 
modes  of  brain  action  evinced  in  spontaneous  bodily 
movements,  such  as  are  seen  in  the  poorly  nourished 


MENTAL  REVERSION  1 93 

brain  of  the  patient  ill  with  fever,  who  in  his  delirium 
ejaculates  words  and  picks  the  bedclothes  with  his 
fingers.^ 

The  revival  of  former  thoughts  often  replaces  the 
activity  of  those  of  recent  date ;  this  corresponds  to  the 
inactivity  of  recent  impressions,  or,  it  may  be,  to  their 
dissolution.  Replacement  of  thoughts  implies  proba- 
bly in  many  instances  dissolution  of  existing  unions  of 
nerve  cells,  the  nerve  paths  which  connected  them  hav- 
ing disappeared,  thus  setting  the  nerve  cells  free  to 
enter  into  new  combinations.  In  a  brain  with  healthy 
activity,  reversion  of  spontaneity  during  a  period  of 
rest  may  lead  to  the  dissolution  of  a  line  of  thoughts, 
resulting  in  greater  freedom  either  for  the  reception  of 
new  impressions  or  the  revival  of  former  ones.  The 
writer  lays  aside  his  work  and  observes  those  around 
him,  or  joins  in  general  conversation. 

1  Reversion  in  illness.     See  "Anatomy  of  Movement,"  Chapter  III. 
o 


CHAPTER   X 
Mental  Hygiene  and  Voluntary  Mental  Power 

Mental  action  as  a  physiological  process  occurring  in 
the  brain  (psychosis)  is  known  to  us  only  by  inference 
from  our  observation  of  its  expression.  We  all  know 
that  mental  action  may  take  place  without  immediate 
expression;  we  beheve  that  many  thoughts  occur  in 
children's  heads  that  are  not  expressed;  hence  much 
trouble  has  been  taken  by  many  workers  in  child- 
study  to  get  at  the  contents  of  their  minds.  Mental 
processes  leading  to  expression  are  capable  of  ob- 
servation ;  we  find  in  childhood  mental  healthiness 
and  aptitude  or  mental  disorderliness  and  inaptitude. 
These  subjects  for  inquiry  may  be  pursued  on  the 
principles  laid  down  in  studying  the  visible  characters 
of  brain  action,  and  afford  a  basis  of  mental  hygiene 
which  may  be  followed  after  the  methods  of  other 
natural  sciences  by  observation,  description,  analysis, 
and  inference,  leading  to  generalisations  from  experi- 
ence.    (See  Chapter  V.,  p.  103.) 

A  large  field  for  observation  and  study  is  thus 
opened  up  as  supplemental  and  co-relative  to  the 
physiological  aspect  of  mental  training  and  school 
life ;   while  school  hygiene,  in  its  purely  physical  as- 

194 


MENTAL  APTITUDE  1 95 

pects,  deals  with  health  culture  and  the  prevention  of 
disease.  Among  other  sections  of  mental  hygiene^ 
we  may  study  :  — 

Mental  aptitudes  and  mental  disabilities ;  or  causes 
of  mental  dulness  in  children.     (See  Chapter  III.) 

Mental  weariness  and  brain  fatigue. 

Mental  confusion  and  observed  concomitant  condi- 
tions.    (See  Chapter  I.,  p.  15.) 

Defects  of  memory  and  the  means  of  removing 
them. 

Reversion  in  mental  status  and  childish  faults.  (See 
Chapter  IX.,  p.  191.) 

Mental  breakdown  at  adolescence,  and  its  connec- 
tion with  previous  training. 

Mental  aptitude,  or  the  capacity  for  mental  training, 
is  indicated  in  a  child  in  whom  we  observe  spontaneity 
of  action  easily  controlled  through  the  senses  and  regu- 
lated by  impressions  received ;  much  spontaneous  ac- 
tion, liveliness  of  facial  expression,  talkativeness,  with 
capacity  to  follow  organised  games  and  occupations, 
are  hopeful  signs.  When  these  are  accompanied  by 
good  imitative  power  in  action  and  in  speech,  with 
retention  of  what  has  been  acquired,  and  increasingly 
exact  repetition  after  practice,  the  indications  of  edu- 
cable  brain  power  are  distinctly  present.  The  culti- 
vation of  each  individual  sign   of  such  aptitude,  first 

1  I  here  quote  from  my  recent  article  contributed  to  the  Lancet. 
London,  April  29,  1899. 


196  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

separately,  then  collectively,  may  be  advisable ;  this  is 
specially  the  case  where  one  item  is  deficient,  as,  for 
example,  where  some  form  of  spontaneity  is  not  easily 
coordinated,  it  may  be  restless  eye-movements  or  finger 
twitches,  which  lead  to  incorrect  observation  and  poor 
manipulative  abihty.  These  points  I  have  described 
in  detail.     (See  Chapter  III.) 

Mental  hygiene,  as  a  science,  demands  some  know- 
ledge of  the  physiological  action  occurring  in  the  brain 
during  various  mental  processes,  as  well  as  appreciation 
of  the  general  status  of  the  pupil's  brain  in  which  such 
action  is  observed.  The  special  modes  of  action  ob- 
served may  be  satisfactory  or  disorderly ;  while  the 
status  of  his  brain  is  indicated  by  its  general  characters 
as  being  normal  or  subnormal. 

Will  and  the  power  of  volition  are  foundations  of 
character.  The  term  ''voluntary  power"  is  conven- 
ient as  a  label  for  a  certain  kind  of  action  of  which  we 
all  know  something.  As  I  do  not  admit,  for  the  pur- 
poses of  scientific  investigation,  that  consciousness  and 
volition  are  causes  of  visible  action,  it  will  be  necessary 
to  trace  the  processes  occurring  in  the  brain  (psychosis) 
corresponding  to  what  is  commonly  and  conveniently 
termed  voluntary  power  or  action,  and  also  to  study 
and  become  familiar  with  their  modes  of   expression. 

Various  modes  of  voluntary  action  may  be  analysed 
as  to  their  expression,  and  the  brain  action  correspond- 
ing may  be  inferred.     Actions  admitted  to  be  volun- 


VOLUNTARY   POWER  1 97 

tary  may  be  contrasted  with  others  which  are  clearly 
involuntary.  Examples  of  children  may  be  considered 
in  whom  volitional  power  is  seen,  and  contrasted  with 
others  in  whom  it  is  absent   or   but   slightly  marked. 

Voluntary  action  may  be  motor  or  mental ;  the  child 
may  do  something  to  please  you,  or  he  may  keep  quiet 
for  a  minute  to  think  what  he  ought  to  do  next  and 
how  to  set  about  it.  When  a  physical  excercise  is  per- 
formed as  a  series  of  movements,  following  a  command 
but  without  further  direction,  motor  voluntary  action  is 
seen.  When  the  pupil  reads  his  lesson,  persistently 
suppressing  all  thoughts  that  arise  other  than  those 
guided  by  the  book,  voluntary  mental  power  is  exerted. 
The  boy  may  think  out  some  "  reason  why"  in  his  head, 
without  looking  at  book  or  paper  and  without  visible 
expression  in  action. 

Voluntary  action  is  mostly  an  expression  of  antece- 
dent brain  impressions  reviving  to  activity  and  interact- 
ing among  themselves,  independent  of  present  guidance. 
It  seems  to  depend  upon  brain  organisation,  evolved  or 
built  up  by  training,  as  well  as  upon  some  spontaneity ; 
there  is  a  revival  to  an  active  state  of  previous  impres- 
sions acquired  which  become  arranged  in  an  orderly  man- 
ner, and  interact  and  control  one  another  after  modes 
previously  established.    (See  Chapter  VIII.,  p.  171.) 

Voluntary  power  is  in  great  part  dependent  upon  the 
general  characters  of  brain  action  previously  acquired, 
as  well  as  upon  experience.     (See  Chapter  II.) 


198  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

/ 

Spontaneity  plays  a  part  in  voluntary  action ;  occur- 
ring independently  of  present  stimulation  or  guidance, 
activity  in  the  brain  centres  originates  the  action  with- 
out impress  through  the  senses.  The  boy,  having  com- 
pleted his  exercise,  gets  up,  without  direction,  and  puts 
away  his  books.  Again,  spontaneity  may  interfere  with 
what  we  call  voluntary  action,  seen  in  extra  movements 
and  fidgetiness,  or  disconnected  thoughts  arise  in  the 
brain  through  the  want  of  control  and  guidance. 

Impressionability  of  the  brain  in  various  forms  is 
necessary  to  the  acquisition  of  voluntary  power;  but, 
during  purely  voluntary  thought,  it  is  the  interaction 
going  on  among  the  brain  centres,  independent  of  ex- 
ternal stimulus,  that  characterises  the  mode  of  action. 
In  fact,  if  there  be  much  impression  by  the  environ- 
ment, this  is  opposed  to  purely  voluntary  self-control. 

Inhibition.  —  We  speak  of  "  concentrating  the  atten- 
tion "  in  voluntary  thinking.  Among  other  points  this 
signifies  inhibition  of  spontaneous  movements  as  well 
as  thoughts  arising  which  are  not  connected  with  (ad- 
herent to)  those  in  the  direct  line  of  thought.  This 
inhibition  in  physiological  action  is  produced  by  the 
activity  of  the  brain  centres  corresponding  to  a  domi- 
nant established  principle,  or  a  previous  direction.  In- 
hibition is  the  faculty  continuously  exerted  by  the 
primary  impression  or  direction  of  thought  in  prevent- 
ing action  of  the  brain  centres  arising  spontaneously 
from   sending  out  force  to  the   muscles  producing  ex- 


BRAIN  ACTION  AND   VOLITION  1 99 

pression.  Then  the  centres  act  among  themselves  by 
their  nerve  paths,  and  those  that  have  often  been  con- 
nected before  are  reassociated  as  formerly ;  thoughts 
become  arranged  and  connected,  making  a  plan  for 
action.  The  child  is  quiet  for  a  moment,  thinking  out 
his  sentence,  then  he  writes  it  down ;  during  thought, 
certain  nerve  centres  become  temporarily  connected  for 
action  in  a  certain  order  and  remain  active,  while  the 
others,  not  stimulated  by  the  "dominant  idea,"  subside 
into  inactivity.  Exercise  of  the  will  in  suppressing 
spontaneous  thoughts  that  arise  leads  after  a  time  to 
the  visible  signs  of  fatigue,  showing  that  the  mental 
effort  corresponds  to  physical  brain  action.  Once  ac- 
quired, the  habit  of  inhibition  by  the  employment  of 
established  principles  and  directions  saves  much  fatigue 
in  the  future.     (See  Chapter  VII.,  p.  155.) 

Control  through  the  senses  and  by  muscle  sense  in 
training  does  much  to  cultivate  voluntary  power.  The 
impressions  made  on  the  brain  must  be  definite  and 
exact,  not  merely  the  impress  of  words.  Directions 
(verbal)  should  be  precise,  and  where  possible  should 
correspond  to  and  be  coupled  with  physical  impres- 
sions; thus  they  become  more  permanent  than  direc- 
tions merely  verbal.  For  the  purpose  of  cultivating 
voluntary  power  in  estimating  proportion  —  and  in- 
directly the  value  of  things  —  training  should  be  prac- 
tised with  weights  in  the  hands,  say,  one-half,  one,  two 
ounces,  and  the  names  and  numbers  expressing  these 


200  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

weights  should  be  connected  with  the  proportion  of 
muscle  tension  resulting  from  holding  them ;  thus  pro- 
portional impressions  are  received  in  the  pupil's  brain, 
and  a  standard  for  comparison  is  impressed  and  retained 
which  may  revive  in  voluntary  action.  (See  Chapter 
VI L,  p.  155.)  A  scale  or  standard  of  measurement  may 
be  established  in  the  brain  by  practice  in  estimating  the 
length  of  horizontal  lines  drawn  on  the  blackboard  and 
others  placed  vertically  by  means  of  the  eye-movements  ; 
or  the  length  of  sticks  by  measurement  with  the  hands. 
In  each  case  physical  effects  of  proportional  action  are 
produced  which  may  be  coupled  with  terms  of  expres- 
sion, and  used  in  forming  a  voluntary  judgment  in  other 
matters. 

Some  faculty  for  voluntary  processes  of  thought  and 
comparison  is  thus  implanted  in  the  child's  brain.  Many 
of  the  modes  of  action  that  need  training  through  sen- 
sory impressions  might  be  described.  The  results  of 
training,  when  established,  easily  revive  to  activity,  fol- 
lowing a  single  dominant  thought  or  direction  from  the 
teacher.  The  directions  employed  in  previous  teach- 
ing, if  firmly  retained  after  practice,  may,  like  physical 
impressions,  be  easily  revived  to  activity,  and  take 
part  in  brain  action  during  processes  of  voluntary  or 
self-contained  thinking. 

Thus  the  brain,  acting  under  a  single  direction  or 
dominant  thought,  and  without  receiving  present  im- 
pressions  from  without,  may  be   the  seat  of  reviving 


MENTAL   HABITS  20I 

sensory  impressions  coupled  in  succession  with  the 
terms  of  direction ;  the  nerve  centres  in  the  brain  that 
have  been  trained  or  coordinated  react  one  after  an- 
other, and  they  become  arranged  in  order  for  expres- 
sion. After  thinking  what  to  do,  or  what  to  write,  a 
long  series  of  connected  acts  or  a  written  paragraph 
may  follow.  This  result  can  only  be  obtained  after 
training  and  practice. 

Established  modes  of  brain  action  are  needed,  such 
as  methods  of  procedure,  e.g.  methods  of  examining 
flowers  as  taught  by  the  use  of  a  schedule  (see  Chapter 
VIII.,  p.  172);  the  use  of  numbers  to  be  coupled  with 
things  or  acts ;  modes  of  noting  and  describing  the 
order  of  events  and  their  sequences ;  standards  of  com- 
parison and  expression  for  numbers,  weight,  measure- 
ment of  length,  surface,  volume ;  modes  of  estimating 
ratio  and  proportion,  and  their  expression. 

All  these  modes  of  action  in  the  brain  come  into 
useful  employment.  Voluntary  action  in  home  lessons 
is  not  necessarily  produced  under  immediate  and  pres- 
ent continued  guidance  of  a  teacher,  as  it  is  in  class 
teaching.  Preparation  work  affords  some  opportunity 
for  spontaneity ;  the  inaccuracies  may  show  the  teacher 
in  what  particulars  the  class  teaching  has  failed  with 
the  individual  pupil  to  produce  one  particular  mode 
of  procedure.  In  so  far  as  the  pupil's  action  is  self- 
contained,  and  not  dependent  upon  guidance,  it  is 
spontaneous ;  while,  as  the  result  of  previous  training, 


202  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

brain  organisation  has  been  built  up  and  leads  to  the 
action  of  one  established  act  or  mode  of  procedure 
after  another. 

Coordination.  —  I  think  it  will  be  found  by  teachers 
that  the  pupils  well  trained  in  all  the  general  char- 
acters of  brain  action,  by  means  of  physical  exercises 
and  in  particular  in  coordinated  movements,  acquire 
the  modes  of  voluntary  power  better  and  more  easily 
than  others  in  whom  such  training  has  been  neglected. 
From  what  has  been  said  it  follows  that  class  work 
under  guidance  trains  method  and  gives  exactness; 
while  voluntary  work  at  home  cultivates  the  coordi- 
nation of  spontaneous  mental  activity.  Voluntary  co- 
ordinated action  has  a  foundation  in  spontaneity  trained 
to  orderly  procedure. 

Spreading  brain  action  may  interfere  with  steady 
volitional  power.  A  butterfly  comes  in  at  the  window, 
the  sight  controls  all  the  boy's  action  as  he  chases  it. 
The  impression  of  want  of  food  is  felt,  and  the  lesson 
is  forgotten.  The  thought  of  the  playground  occurs, 
and  the  game  is  followed  in  imagination.  But  spread- 
ing brain  action  may  be  started  by  some  portion  of 
the  lesson.  When  writing  the  description  of  a  pea- 
flower,  in  place  of  following  the  directions  of  the 
schedule  the  child  may  think,  "Why  do  insects  visit 
the  flowers  ? "  then  he  thinks  of  the  butterflies  and 
how  they  fly,  and  that  the  wings  of  the  insect  look 
like  the  alae  of  the  (papilionaceous)  flower,  so  he  loses 


WANDERING  THOUGHTS 


203 


time  and  does  not  write  a  good  exercise  —  but  he 
thinks. 

Such  wandering  thoughts  in  the  pupil  are  not  well 
coordinated  voluntary  action ;  but  if  this  spreading 
area  of  thought  can  be  guided,  the  process  may  be- 
come useful.  The  boy  at  his  Euclid  may  give  a 
different  demonstration  to  that  he  has  been  taught. 
Spreading  area  of  thought  is  necessary  in  finding  an 
illustrative  example  for  an  essay;  many  arise,  one  is 
selected  as  being  in  harmony  with  the  subject  in 
hand. 

Response  may  be  delayed,  yet  the  action  may  be 
voluntary;  the  fact  of  an  interval  between  direction 
and  response,  when  the  action  required  is  complicated 
and  in  no  way  a  repetition  of  the  direction,  may  be 
looked  upon  as  a  voluntary  intelligent  act.  **  Direc- 
tion —  dissect  the  parts  of  that  plant  and  arrange  them 
for  demonstration."  There  may  be  an  interval  during 
the  period  of  thinking  how  to  begin  ;  then  the  work  pro- 
ceeds stage  by  stage  without  further  guidance  and  is 
recognised  as  intelligent  and  voluntary. 

We  may  now  briefly  trace  the  evolution  of  the 
signs  of  voluntary  power  from  infancy.  At  birth  the 
infant  does  not  show  evidence  of  voluntary  power ; 
certain  reflex  actions  occur,  and  a  spreading  area  of 
movement  is  seen  in  crying ;  spontaneous  movements 
indicate  much  separate  action  of  the  various  brain 
centres,    with    but    little    impressionability    and     little 


204  "T^E  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

power  of  control.  At  about  four  months  old  sensory 
impressions  are  followed  by  momentary  inhibition  of 
movement,  and  a  little  later,  such  control  is  followed 
by  some  coordinated  act,  as  the  object  shown  is 
grasped.  As  yet  we  see  no  indication  of  anything 
that  can  properly  be  called  a  voluntary  action  depend- 
ing upon  the  interaction  of  impressions  received. 

A  few  months  later,  but  before  the  acquisition  of 
speech,  choice  may  be  made  between  two  objects  pre- 
sented ;  one  only  is  taken  hold  of,  or  if  both  are 
grasped,  one  is  dropped,  and  the  other  retained.  One 
impression  by  sight  proves  stronger  than  the  other; 
this  is  perhaps  the  earliest  kind  of  action  that  can  be 
termed  voluntary  —  there  is  interaction  among  the  brain 
centres,  and  the  stronger  impression  is  expressed  in 
action. 

Various  kinds  of  action  in  a  child  are  characterised 
as  voluntary,  such  as  action  following  a  word  of  com- 
mand ;  complex  series  of  acts  adapted  by  the  environ- 
ment, and  therefore  in  harmony  with  it,  controlled 
through  the  eye,  the  ear,  or  by  the  muscle  sense; 
also  well-adapted  speech.  Volitional  action  usually 
depends  upon  antecedent  impressions,  associated  and 
adherent,  as  well  as  upon  some  spontaneity  bringing 
them  into  activity. 

Many  modes  of  brain  action  are  contributory  to  vol- 
untary power  following  experience  and  practice  in  trac- 
ing out  the  order  of  observations  and  events,  or  the 


OBSERVATION  AND   COMPARISON  205 

cause  and  effect.  In  such  mental  processes  there  is 
interaction  among  brain  centres,  not  under  present 
guidance  from  the  outside,  yet  capable  of  impressiona- 
bility. Many  brain  impressions  spontaneously  recur- 
ring to  an  active  condition  become  arranged  and 
rearranged  according  to  their  adhesiveness,  as  in  pro- 
cesses of  comparison  and  classification. 

Choice  and  comparison  are  examples  of  voluntary 
power;  the  former  is  simple,  the  latter  needs  cultiva- 
tion in  many  ways,  each  of  which  must  be  trained. 
(See  Chapters  I.,  p.  14;  VII.,  p.  155.)  Simple  compari- 
son may  be  made  as  to  agreement  or  difference,  among 
objects  seen  or  others  previously  observed,  in  the  degree 
of  the  weight  of  each,  in  the  impressions  received  (by 
muscle  sense)  in  measurement ;  in  either  case  it  is 
the  impressions  made  in  the  pupil's  brain  that  are 
compared,  and  these,  when  revived  to  activity,  may 
lead  to  comparison  and  an  expression  of  proportion, 
as  he  writes  a  description  of  what  he  has  seen  and 
what  he  thinks.  In  teaching  habits  of  observation, 
each  physical  impression  made  through  the  senses 
should  be  exact  and  definite.  The  pupil's  description 
of  his  observations  in  class  may  be  written  as  a  home 
lesson ;  there  will  be  a  pause  sometimes  in  his  writing, 
for  the  revival  of  the  impressions  previously  received ; 
mistakes  may  occur  from  not  having  received  firm  im- 
pressions in  class  coupled  with  the  terms  of  descrip- 
tion.    These  periods  of  stopping  to  think  may  be  too 


206  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

prolonged ;  both  physical  and  mental  training  may 
quicken  all  the  general  modes  of  brain  action,  and 
improve  the  mental  processes. 

The  general  modes  of  brain  action  all  come  into 
play  in  establishing  voluntary  power ;  they  interact  in 
various  ways.  In  the  school  child  who  has  acquired 
orderly  habits  under  training,  certain  modes  of  action 
are  established;  groups  of  brain  centres  have  been  so 
far  connected  by  nerve  paths  that  they  tend  to  act  in 
a  fixed  order. 

Common  examples  of  established  modes  of  action 
may  be  mentioned :  the  salute  on  meeting  teacher  is 
an  acquired  habit ;  names  of  classmates  are  known ; 
the  numerals  and  the  methods  of  counting  have  been 
learned ;  experience  has  been  gained  of  a  bad  mark 
for  late  attendance;  the  names  and  sight  of  buns  and 
cake  for  lunch  have  been  retained.  The  boy  enter- 
ing the  schoolroom  before  work  begins  recognises 
the  master,  then  proceeds  to  count  his  fellow  pupils 
present  by  their  names  without  giving  expression, 
names  the  rest  to  himself  as  being  Hkely  to  receive 
a  bad  mark,  thinks  of  his  lunch  and  selects  cake  for 
his  penny.  Former  impressions  interact  with  those 
produced  through  his  senses  in  such  voluntary  think- 
ing as  is  indicated. 

The  voluntary  character  of  action  does  not  so  much 
depend  upon  the  order  of  acts  and  thoughts,  and 
their    arrangement,    as    upon    their    independence    of 


VOLUNTARY  ACTION  AND  THOUGHT  207 

present  stimulus  or  guidance  from  the  outside ;  vol- 
untary thoughts  may  be  sequential  or  disconnected, 
but  are  usually  related  to  certain  antecedents. 

Coordinated  action  is  characterised  by  relations  in 
the  time  and  order  of  individual  acts,  and  the  degree 
of  each  act  being  in  due  proportion ;  this  may  take 
place  under  control  of  the  present  environment  or  be 
established  as  a  fixed  mode  of  brain  action  following 
from  practice. 

Intellectual  action  is  indicated  mainly  by  the  order 
in  which  the  thoughts  are  expressed.  Voluntary  in- 
tellectual power  is  the  highest  attainment  to  be  culti- 
vated. 

We  speak  of  (i)  voluntary  motor  action,  (2)  volun- 
tary thinking  without  expression,  (3)  voluntary  thought 
and  its  expression.  In  giving  illustrations  each  mode 
of  voluntary  power  may  be  exemplified,  as  they  are 
much  associated. 

Direct  the  child  to  write  a  description  of  what  he 
did  during  the  previous  day.  He  sits  down  to  his 
work  and  remains  quiet  for  a  while,  thinking ;  the  im- 
pression of  the  direction  is  followed  in  his  brain  ac- 
tion by  revival  of  the  visual  and  auditory  impressions 
previously  received ;  these,  then,  adhere  in  the  order 
of  their  succession,  showing  that  the  order  of  their 
reception  was  retained.  Many  points  which  produced 
but  little  impression  are  omitted  from  his  description, 
such    as    getting    up    and    going   to   bed.       His   own 


208  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

thoughts  are  hardly  indicated,  school  teaching  is  not 
referred  to ;  but  points  in  home  life  and  at  play,  as 
well  as  what  he  saw  in  the  streets  and  the  shops, 
are  described. 

It  may  be  said  that  obedience  should  be  voluntary 
and  prompt ;  perhaps  it  is  more  prompt  in  school, 
and  though  less  exact  and  quick,  more  voluntary  in 
the  home. 

A  boy  after  school  is  asked  to  go  skating.  The 
word  skating  is  followed  in  his  mental  action  by  the 
revived  activity  of  impressions  formerly  made  in  his 
brain ;  also  other  impressions  experienced  revive :  the 
direction  of  his  father  to  come  straight  home  after 
school ;  the  impression  of  the  dinner  which  will  not 
wait  for  him,  and  the  story  book  at  home  —  all  these 
impressions  become  active ;  father's  directions,  dinner, 
story  book,  adhere  as  a  series  in  his  brain,  together 
with  a  former  experience  of  the  ice  breaking  on  the 
pond.  Experience  aids  voluntary  power.  Impres- 
sions (verbal)  of  the  abstract  principles  of  obedience 
and  duty  do  not  arise  till,  after  walking  home,  he  sees 
his  mother.  The  boy's  conduct,  which  we  call  volun- 
tary, depended  upon  many  previous  impressions  re- 
vived in  his  brain  which  recurred  in  a  series,  as  the 
effect  of  training  these  controlled  his  action  when  no 
words  of  direction  were  heard. 

Voluntary  action,  as  thus  illustrated,  occurs  in  the 
healthy  brain   which,  under  experience   and  training. 


IMPRESS  OF  VERBAL  DIRECTIONS  209 

has  received  and  retained  a  number  of  fixed  impres- 
sions, but  they  must  be  definite  physical  impressions, 
not  merely  produced  by  words.  These  are  repre- 
sented in  the  brain  by  groups  of  nerve  cells  tending 
to  act  together  (diatactic  unions),  and  they  are  con- 
nected by  nerve  paths  with  other  such  groups,  so  that 
energy  habitually  tends  to  flow  in  fixed  directions, 
even  when  no  sensory  stimulus  is  acting.  It  is  mainly 
the  interaction  of  such  groups  of  nerve  cells  formed 
by  sensory  impressions  that  leads  to  the  earlier  mani- 
festations of  voluntary  power. 

I  cannot  define  "volition"  and  "will"  in  physio- 
logical terms,  but  we  may  trace  the  modes  of  brain 
action  which  lead  to  voluntary  power  and  thought. 
The  general  characters  of  healthy  brain  action  all 
help :  groups  of  brain  cells  in  the  highest  parts  of 
the  brain  (the  cortex)  in  their  activity  correspond  to 
thoughts ;  these  when  active  may  be  coordinated  or 
controlled  by  sight  and  by  the  sound  of  words  previ- 
ously familiar. 

Impressions  thus  arising  spontaneously,  or  produced 
through  the  senses  on  the  brain,  may  adhere  by  the 
formation  of  nerve  paths,  so  as  to  occur  after  practice 
in  the  order  in  which  they  were  established. 

The  impressions  made  by  your  directions,  often  re- 
peated, may  similarly  revive  and  become  connected 
in  the  child's  head,  and  guide  his  thinking  when  he 
is  alone.     Capacity  for  choice,  mental  comparison,  and 


210  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

established  modes  of  (logical)  thinking  may  evolve  in 
such  processes.  Thus  spontaneity  may  bring  into  ac- 
tivity former  deeply  implanted  impressions  and  guide 
thoughts  aright.  On  the  other  hand,  if  no  impres- 
sions have  been  firmly  fixed  in  previous  teaching, 
spontaneity  may  upset  all  loosely  connected  thoughts, 
and  nothing  that  can  be  called  voluntary  power  is 
manifested.  The  best  lines  of  voluntary  power  follow 
from  well-established  mental  impressions  interacting 
under  the  influence  of  the  environment. 

Take  the  case  of  preparation  of  lessons  at  home  for 
the  next  day ;  it  seems  to  me  that  they  should  be 
taught  in  class  and  expressed  in  the  home  work,  to 
exercise  voluntary  power  and  allow  of  some  exercise 
of  spontaneity.  In  class  discipline  the  work  is  done 
under  the  teacher's  observation  and  guidance ;  at 
home  the  child  works  alone,  or  at  any  rate  it  is  to  be 
hoped  in  quietness,  with  the  help  of  a  time-table  and 
the  directions  previously  received,  so  that  self-guid- 
ance comes  into  play. 

Training  is  effected  by  producing  impressions  on 
the  nerve  centres  of  the  brain  through  the  senses; 
various  concomitants  may  result  from  your  endeav- 
ours, the  mental  processes  you  produce  may  be  exact 
but  accompanied  by  extra  brain  action,  or  the  pupil's 
response  may  be  a  simple  reproduction  of  what  he 
had  heard  before,  in  place  of  showing  voluntary  brain 
power.     It  is  desirable  to  know  the  general  characters 


SENSORY  IMPRESSIONS  AND   VOLITION  21 1 

of  the  brain  upon  which  you  propose  to  act  and  to 
watch  the  processes  that  occur  in  it,  not  only  the 
effects  produced  by  the  teaching  in  ourselves.  You 
need  to  cultivate  various  capacities  in  the  pupil's 
brain,  giving  facility  to  the  nerve  centres  for  interac- 
tion and  adhesion  under  the  influence  of  a  fixed  direc- 
tion, also  for  the  reactivity  of  former  directions 
received  and  retained,  which  reviving  assist  the  brain 
processes.  Systematic  teaching,  long  continued,  tends 
to  cultivate  certain  forms  of  self-government  or  vol- 
untary power. 

In  cultivating  voluntary  power  distinct  sensory  im- 
pressions are  to  be  produced  by  various  adaptations 
of  your  method.  The  order  of  associated  impressions 
is  important,  and  tends  to  be  retained  in  the  brain, 
while  it  is  strengthened  by  repetition ;  coordination 
trained  by  physical  exercises  will  cultivate  this  men- 
tal faculty.  Associated  impressions  when  firmly  re- 
tained revive  in  the  same  connection  as  a  form  of 
self-contained  action.  Retention  of  the  order  in  which 
the  pupil  has  made  his  observations  has  much  to  do 
with  his  logical  thinking,  and  understanding  antece- 
dents and  sequents,  or  cause  and  effect.  Retention 
of  the  order  of  the  numerals  and  of  the  weights  com- 
pared and  expressed  by  use  of  the  numerals  is  neces- 
sary to  mental  estimation  of  weight,  bulk,  mass  of 
objects,  and  also  to  appreciation  of  the  probable  value 
of   quantities  of   materials   seen.      The   money  values 


212  THE  NERVOUS   SYSTEM   OF  THE  CHILD 

of  one  pound  of  tea  and  ten  pounds  are  in  direct 
proportion  to  the  weight  of  the  shillings  expended  in 
their  purchase. 

Spreading  brain  area  and  excess  of  spontaneity 
need  control  in  voluntary  action ;  inhibition  of  spon- 
taneous thought  as  a  self-contained  power  is  culti- 
vated by  temporary  inhibition  of  movements  in 
physical  training,  which  is  best  brought  about  by  ac- 
tion imitated  from  the  teacher  in  momentary  quiet- 
ness. In  voluntary  power  wandering  thoughts  can 
be  controlled  by  recalling  directions  given,  or  the 
dominant  thought  of  the  exercise  in  hand,  as  during 
home  lessons. 

Some  children  are  quick  mentally,  but  "  scatter- 
brained," others  are  plodding  and  slow  in  response. 
In  some,  will  power  is  naturally  strong  with  persist- 
ent self-contained  purpose ;  while  others  are  docile, 
but  seem  to  have  no  fixed  ideas ;  some  reproduce 
knowledge  acquired  like  a  phonograph  without  any 
apparent  effort,  or  any  secondary  thoughts  arising. 
Intellectual  faculty  is  not  necessarily  accompanied 
by  self-determination,  and  voluntary  action  may 
become  almost  automatic  from  constant  repetition. 
Voluntary  power  is  not  one  brain  faculty,  but  is 
based  on  many  faculties  which  need  to  be  balanced 
in  training.  The  child  first  learns  to  make  a  choice ; 
then  we  see  indications  of  brain  impressions  retained, 
and  established    modes  of   brain  action ;   while  princi- 


SELF-CONTROL  AND    HEALTH 


213 


pies  in  thought  become  evolved,  with  capacity  to 
recall  and  retain  previous  directions  in  a  certain 
order. 

Cultivate  the  habit  of  suppressing  spontaneous 
thoughts  not  associated  with  the  dominant  work  in 
hand,  while  connecting  such  as  arise  in  harmony  with 
the  direction  received  and  previous  training  and  ex- 
perience ;  this  may  be  educated  by  training  the  gen- 
eral characters  of  brain  action  already  described,  and 
build  up  a  voluntary  power  of  use  in  the  duties  of 
life. 

Volitional  power  varies  with  physical  health.  A 
good  state  of  general  health  raises  will  power ;  low 
diet  lessens  it.  A  slight  degree  of  lowered  nutrition 
impairs  voluntary  strength;  so  may  mental  fatigue,  in 
which  condition  spontaneity  is  apt  to  supersede  it, 
and  if  exhaustion  supervenes,  coordination  both  men- 
tal and  motor  may  be  replaced  by  much  disorderliness 
of  brain  function. 

Voluntary  action,  when  it  is  independent  of  strong 
stimulation,  is  mainly  due  to  the  experience  of  past  im- 
pressions in  the  brain  ;  if  these  are  but  few,  voHtional 
power  is  low  and  quickly  fades.  A  strong  exercise  of 
the  will  in  concentrating  attention  and  in  acting  on 
fixed  principles,  even  against  the  distractions  of  cir- 
cumstances, involves  an  amount  of  real  brain  effort 
which  can  produce  the  visible  signs  of  fatigue. 

Action  resulting  from  strong  present  stimulation  is 


214  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM  OF  THE  CHILD 

sometimes  called  voluntary  :  a  moth  settles  on  the 
paper  as  I  write,  I  carry  it  to  the  window  and  set  it 
free,  at  once  it  flies  back  to  the  lighted  lamp  and  gets 
burned.  It  was  not  the  moth's  will,  but  the  light  of  the 
lamp  that  controlled  the  movements.  Certain  move- 
ments are  classed  as  voluntary ;  it  may  be  remarked 
that  growth  is  never  said  to  be  voluntary,  not  even 
when  its  results  are  as  wonderful  as  those  producing 
the  most  complex  actions  seen  in  seedling  plants.^ 

Certain  classes  of  movements  are  not  called  voluntary, 
such  as :  — 

1.  Acts  performed  during  sleep  or  when  other  in- 
dications of  absence  of  consciousness  are  observed. 

2.  Simple  reflex  actions  :  as  closure  of  the  eyelids 
when  the  eyeball  is  touched.  Such  acts  are  uniformly 
repeated  on  stimulation,  without  signs  of  interaction 
among  the  brain  centres.     (See  Chapter  IV.,  p.  75.) 

3.  Respiratory  movements  when  uniform,  as  in 
quiet  breathing,  are  not  voluntary,  but  these  may  be 
quickened  and  altered  in  their  rhythm  under   emotion. 

4.  Uniformly  repeated  movement,  such  as  walking, 
which  is  continued  under  the  control  of  muscle  sense 
without  much  guidance  through  the  senses. 

5.  Speech,  when  merely  ejaculatory  and  discon- 
nected, as  in  delirium. 

6.  Movements     that    appear     to     be    spontaneous, 

1  See  "  Anatomy  of  Movement  and  Modes  of  Growth,"  Chapter  IL 
The  Macmillan  Company 


OBEDIENCE  AND   ORIGINALITY  21 5 

neither  resulting  from  past  impressions  reviving  to 
activity  nor  controlled  by  present  sensory  stimulation, 
such  as  those  of  earliest  infancy.  (See  "  Reversion  of 
Spontaneity,"  Chapter  IX.,  p.  191.) 

In  some  children,  who  may  be  said  to  be  well  trained 
and  obedient,  voluntary  power  is  not  what  it  should  be ; 
it  may  be  prompt,  accurate,  uniform  upon  similar  occa- 
sions, yet  so  far  mechanical  that  the  individual  child  is 
obviously  deficient  in  adaptiveness  and  want  of  true 
self-reliance.  Certain  fixed  modes  of  brain  action  have 
been  established  and  retained  ;  the  pupil  does  as  he 
has  been  taught  to  do  under  certain  circumstances 
apparently  voluntarily,  at  any  rate  without  much  guid- 
ance, yet  under  a  new  set  of  circumstances  he  is  help- 
less and  has  but  little  power  to  act  for  himself.  Such  a 
child  is  wanting  in  spontaneity  and  originality  through 
having  been  too  much  trained  in  one  direction,  leaving 
him  with  too  little  experience  of  the  circumstances  of 
life,  and  but  little  freedom  of  thought,  thus  suppress- 
ing what  is  healthy  in  free  and  spontaneous  thinking. 

Remember  that  voluntary  mental  action  may  occur 
and  thoughts  be  correctly  formed  in  the  mind  without 
the  power  of  expressing  them.  This  is  often  found  to 
be  the  case  in  children  of  the  nervous  type,  and  in 
pupils  not  sufificiently  acquainted  with  the  use  of  lan- 
guage for  expression. 

A  varied  environment  and  circumstances  affording 
opportunities  for  doing  right  or  wrong  in  the  tempta- 


2l6  SCHOOL  LIFE 

tions  of  school  days  take  their  part  in  developing  char- 
acter, and  afford  scope  for  the  good  influences  that  the 
boys  and  girls  in  school  may  exert  over  one  another. 
The  ideas  of  honour  among  schoolmates  in  play  are  just 
as  important  as  the  principles  taught  in  class.  At  the 
boarding  school  half  holidays  out  of  bounds,  and  the 
holidays  spent  at  home,  show  much  of  the  effects  of 
training  and  teaching  exemplified  in  conduct  when  free 
from  restraint. 


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RKF.  NO. 

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Tuke. 

2.  Article  :  Movements  as  signs  of  mental  action. 

3.  Article :  Postures  and  muscular  balance  of  the  body 

indicative  of  mental  status. 

4.  Article  :  Facial  expression. 

5.  Article  :  Evolution  of  mental  faculty. 

6.  Article  :  Psychosis  :  the  neural  acts  corresponding  to 

mental  phenomena. 

7.  1890.     Development  in  relation  to  brain  and  nutrition.    British 

Medical  Jotirnal,  August  23. 

8.  1890-91.     Report  on  the  Physical  and  Mental  condition  of 

fifty  thousand  children  seen  in  106  Schools  in 
London.  Report  of  Comjnissioner  of  Education, 
Washington,  Chap.  XXX. 

9.  1892.     Abstracts   of  the   Milroy  Lectures;    delivered  at  the 

217 


2l8  BIBLIOGRAPHY 


REF.  NO. 


Royal  College  of  Physicians,  London.  "On  an 
Inquiry  as  to  the  physical  and  mental  condition 
of  School  Children."  Lancet  and  British  Medi- 
cal Journal^  March. 

10.  1892.     Transactions  International  Congress  of  Hygiene  and 

Demography,  London.  "On  the  Physical  condi- 
tion of  children  seen  in  Schools,  and  the  local 
distribution  of  defective  development."  Section: 
Demography. 

11.  "On  the  Scientific  observation  and  study  of  children 

in  schools,  and  the  classes  into  which  they  may  be 
grouped."     Section :   Childhood  and  School  Life. 

12.  1892.     "On   the   physical   condition  of  children  —  with  ref- 

erence to  the  effect  of  buildings."  Transactions 
Satiitary  Instittite,  London,  Vol.  XIII. 

13.  1892.     "A  study  of  the  brain  and  its  mental  action;   with 

inferences  as  to  the  nature  of  certain  mental  pro- 
cesses."   Medical  Magazine,  London,  July. 

14.  1893.     "Neural  action  corresponding  to  the  Mental  functions 

of  the  Brain."  Jour7ial  of  Mental  Science,  London, 
January. 

15.  1893.     "Results  of  an  inquiry  as  to  the  physical  and  mental 

conditions  of  Fifty  thousand  children  seen  in  106 
schools  :  with  tables."  fournal  of  Royal  Statis- 
tical Society ^  February. 
Reports  of  a  Co?mnittee  of  the  British  Association 
appointed  to  investigate  Physical  and  Mental  de- 
viations from  the  normal  among  children  in  Public 
Elementary  Schools. 

16.  1893.         The  signs  observed  and  their  numerical  distribution ; 

also  their  distribution  in  groups. 

17.  1894.         Dull  children  and  others  defective  in  mental  status, 

with  recommendations  and  a  form  of  Certificate. 
A  statistical  statement  of  the  cases  and  their  dis- 
tribution under  Ages  and  School  Standards. 


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18.  1895.        Showing  distribution  of  defects  among  the  Nation- 

alities and  Social  Classes :  England.  Also  per- 
centage distribution  on  the  numbers  seen  and 
numbers  noted. 

19.  1896.         Tables  showing  distribution  of  groups  of  children 

among  the  Nationalities  and  Social  classes 
arranged  under  Ages  and  School  Standards. 

20.  1897.         Catalogue  of  11 20  "Exceptional  Children"  who  re- 

quire special  care.  Arranged  in  thirty-four  groups 
distributed  under  Ages  and  School  Standards. 

21.  1898.         Exceptional  Children  as  above:  showing  corelations 

of  the  main  classes  of  defect  in  Age  groups. 

22.  1899.         Exceptional  Children:  showing  the  proportion  of  the 

Primary  groups  to  the  Compound  groups  expressed 
in  percentages  and  distributed  in  Age  groups. 

23.  1894.     Deviations  from  normal  development  among  fifty  thou- 

sand children,  and  their  relations  with  brain  dis- 
orderliness,  mental  dulness,  and  low  nutrition. 
Journal  of  Anthropological  Institute^  London, 
February. 

24.  1894.     Observation  and  study  of  movement  and  mental  status 

in  children.  Proceedings  of  the  Inter  national  Con- 
gress of  Education,  Chicago. 

25.  1894.     Lecture  on  Physical  signs  of  nerve  derangement.    Clini- 

cal Journal,  London,  June. 

26.  1894.     Report  of  Committee  on  Children.     Giving  definition 

of  signs  or  abnormal  points  observed  in  fifty  thou- 
sand children.  British  Medical  Journal,  July  28. 
International  Clinics.  Lippincott  &  Co.,  Phila- 
delphia. 

27.  1894.         Delicate  children  and  their  management.     Vol.  III. 

28.  1895.        Brain  disorder  in  School  children.     Vol.  II.,  Fifth 

Series. 

29.  1896.         The  Signs  to  observe  in  the  brain  disorders  of  chil- 

dren.    Vol.  II.,  Sixth  Series. 


220  BIBLIOGRAPHY 


RBF.  KO. 


30.  1897.        The  nature  and  treatment  of  Chorea  in  its  various 

types.     Vol.  I..  Seventh  Series. 

31.  1897.        Congenital    defect    of  the   heart   and   other    parts; 

prognosis    and    treatment.      Vol.    III.,    Seventh 
Series. 

32.  1898.         Physical  signs  in  examination  of  brain  cases.     Vol. 

III.,  Eighth  Series. 

33.  1898.         The  value  of  venesection  in  certain  cases  of  heart 

failure.     Vol.  IV.,  Seventh  Series. 

34.  1899.     Disturbed  circulation  of  the  brain.     Vol.  III.,  Ninth 

Series. 

35.  1895.     Lecture  on  Heart   disease   and   the   Brain.      Clinical 

Journal^  London,  January. 

36.  1896.     Report  of  the  Departmental  Committee  appointed  by 

the  Local  Govertiment   Board  to    inquire   as    to 
Education  of  Children  under  Poor  Law  Guardians 
in  London. 
Evidence  as  to  conditions  of  the  children  and  those 
feeble-minded.     Vol.  II.,  pp.  14-21. 

37.  1896.     Report  of  the  Departmental  Committee  appointed  by 

the  Home  Office  on   Reformatory  and   Industrial 
Schools. 
Evidence  as  to  conditions  of  the  children  and  recom- 
mendations.    Vol.  II.,  pp.  1011-1020. 

38.  1896.     Eighth  International  Congress  of  Hygiene  and  Demog- 

raphy^ Budapest. 
Report  of  the  Committee  on  Mental  and  physical 
conditions  of  children,  appointed  by  the  Seventh 
Congress.     Transactions^  Vol.  III.,  p.  304. 

39.  Demonstration  of  children  under  observation.   Trans- 

actions^ Vol.  III.,  p.  396. 

40.  A  method  of  observing  and  reporting  on  mental  and 

physical  conditions  of  children.    Tr ans actions ^V q\. 
II.,  p.  621. 


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41.  1896.     Mental  and  physical  conditions  among  fifty  thousand 

children  seen  1892- 1894  and  the  methods  of  study- 
ing recorded  observations,  with  special  reference 
to  the  determination  of  the  causes  of  mental  dul- 
ness  and  other  defects.  Journal  of  Royal  Statis- 
tical Society^  March. 

42.  1897.     On  the  relations  between  bodily  development,  nutrition, 

and  brain  conditions  in  their  pathological  aspects. 
Transactions  Royal  Medico -Chirurgical  Society^ 
London. 

43.  1897.     On  mental  and  physical  feebleness,  with  analysis  of 

cases.     Lancet^  London,  February  6. 

44.  1898.     Report  of  the  Departmental  Committee  appointed  by 

the  Education  Department  as   to   Defective  and 
Epileptic  Children. 
Evidence   as  to  the  feeble-minded,  Medical  advice 
and  Statistics.     Vol.  II.,  pp.  25-39. 
1899.     School  World.     Macmillan  Co. 

45.  Physical  observation  of  the  boys  and  girls  in  school. 

January. 

46.  Points  for  description  in  observing  boys  and  girls  in 

School  life.     February. 

47.  Physiognomical  signs,  indicating  development  normal 

or  subnormal  in  boys  and  girls.     March. 

48.  Propositions   concerning  boys  and  girls   in   School 

Life.     April. 

49.  1899.     The  mental  abilities  and  disabilities  of  children.    Read 

before  the  Childhood  Society,  London.      Lancet^ 
April  29. 
1899.     Cyclopcedia   of  the  Diseases  of  Children.      Keating. 
Vol.  V. 

50.  Scientific  study  of  the  mental  and  physical  conditions 

of  childhood ;  based  upon  the  examination  of  one 
hundred  thousand  children. 

51.  Neural  and  mental  disorders  in  children. 


222  BIBLIOGRAPHY 


Twentieth  Century  Medicine.  Neural  and  mental  de- 
fects in  childhood. 

Clifford  Allbutt's  System  of  Medicine.  Dull,  Delicate, 
and  Nervous  Children. 

International  Congress  of  Women,  London.  Trans- 
actions. Teaching  children  mentally  or  physically 
defective. 


KE,r . 
52. 

1899. 

53- 

1899. 

S4. 

1899. 

INDEX 


Accuracy,  in  modes  of  action,  143. 
Act,  of  attention,  179. 
Action,  see  Movements. 

compound,  of  brain,  39,  40. 

coordinated,  207. 

coordinated  by  sight,  145. 

coordinated    through    the    senses, 
68. 

in  cell  growth,  controlled,  185. 

neuro-muscular,  130. 

spontaneous,  see  Spontaneous  ac- 
tion. 
Acts,  not  voluntary,  214,  215. 
Addition,  115. 

cause  of  difficulty  in,  13. 

muscle  sense  in,  38. 
Adhesiveness,  a  form  of  mental  action, 

188. 
Adolescence,  excitement  at,  5. 

preparation  for,  49. 
Adverse  circumstances,  8. 
Age,  average,  for  college,  139. 
Age  groups,  49. 
Air,  16. 

pure,  127, 
Amaebae  and  oxygen,  127. 
Anaemia,  122. 
Analogy,  of  brain  and  army,  102,  107. 

of  growth  and  movement,  97. 

of    telephone    system    and    brain, 
107. 
Anger,  see  Passion. 
Antecedents,  of  a  child,  4. 
Anthropometry,  60. 

and  development,  60. 
Antihelix,  see  Pleat  of  ear. 
Appetite,  capricious,  55. 

voracious,  55. 
Aptitude,  mental,  177. 


Aptitude,  with  large  brain,  30. 
Arithmetic,  to  addition,  150. 
Aspects  of  childhood,  5. 

of  teacher  and  physician,  8. 
Assimilation,  127. 
Associated  ideas,  memory  of,  189, 
Athletics,  Grecian,  151. 
Atmosphere  in  class-room,  127. 
Attention,  faculty  of,  179. 

first  sign  of,  35,  36. 

mental,  178. 

not  prolonged,  185. 
Awakening,  gradual,  123. 

Baby,  spreading  movement  in,  175. 
Back  bent,  56. 

in  infant,  24. 
Back  straight,  130. 
Bain,  Professor  A.,  188. 
Balance,  see  Postures. 

of  hand,  53. 

of  hand  in  sleep,  54. 

of  hand,  nervous,  55. 

of  hand,  straight,  53. 

of  hand,  weak,  54. 
Basis  of  character,  32. 

for  arithmetic,  12. 
Bath,  cold,  123. 

Beautiful  objects,  value  of,  126. 
Bell,  Sir  Charles,  description  of  laugh- 
ter, 87. 
Blood  and  digestion,  5. 
Blood  and  oxygen,  5. 
Bodily  development  and  brain  activity, 

60. 
Body  and  brain,  3. 
Book,  position  of,  129. 
Books,  small  type,  126. 
Boots,  121. 


223 


224 


INDEX 


Botanical  methods,  189. 

Brain,  action  on  other  organs,  117. 

and  blood  supply,  117. 

and  inheritance,  95. 

and  muscular  exercise,  4. 

and  respiration,  4,  5. 

centres  act  separately,  94. 

controlling  nutrition,  4,  5. 

good  and  bad  habits,  effect  on,  4. 

growth  of,  23,  28. 

nutrition  and  stimulation  necessary, 
26. 

reaction  on  nutrition,  120. 

relation  to  digestion,  5. 

status  normal,  196. 

status  of,  32. 

status  subnormal,  196. 

training  of,  117. 

types  of,  in  family,  95. 

weight,  28. 
Brain  action,  and  attention,  184. 

apart  from  mind,  4. 

characters  of,  examples,  108,  109. 

compound,  in. 

disorderly,  89. 

general  characters  of,  32,  73. 

good  modes  of,  89. 

not  balanced,  185. 

physical  and  mental  effort,  199. 

superfluous,  signs  of,  13. 

varieties  of,  33-46. 
Brain  cells,  coordinated  by  sight,  209. 
Brain  centres,  and  nerve  paths,  68. 

interaction  of,  188-205. 

preadjustment  of,  179. 
Brain  evolution,  influence  of  home  life 
on,  94. 

influence  of  school  life  on,  94. 

in  nature,  95. 
Brain  moods,  changing,  3. 

outcome  of  expressing  abilities  or 
faults,  3. 
Brain  power,  evolution  of,  94. 
Brain  processes,  in   comparison,  162, 

163. 
Brain  pulsation,  175. 
Brain    states,    and    subnormal    nerve 

signs,  59. 
Brain  weight,  adults,  60. 

at  seventh  year,  60. 


Brain  weight  at  twentieth  year,  115. 
Breakfast  dietary,  133. 
Burnham,  Dr.,  128. 
Busts,  125. 

Camper,  Pierre,  on  expression,  86,  88. 
Canine  tooth,  uncovered  on  one  side 

in  grinning,  51. 
Carriage,  graceful,  130. 
Case,  illustrative,  46,  47. 
Catarrh,  and  fat,  136. 
Causation,  ideas  of,  166. 
Centres,  interaction  of,  198. 

reassociation  of,  199. 
Character  and  training,  95. 
Chart,  for  description  of  child,  79,  80. 

of  child  of  nervous  type,  90-93. 
Chest,  capacious,  131. 

description  of,  28. 

measurements  of,  28. 
Child,  at  school,  description  of,  48. 

clothing  of,  121. 

cross,  119. 

evolution  of,  94. 

good  habits  in,  120. 

in  sleep,  122. 

nervous  type  of,  description,  90-93. 

sensations  of,  121. 

tired,  6. 

waking  up,  122,  123. 
Childish  brain  states,  reversion  to,  191. 
Childish  condition,  reversion  to,  192. 
Childlike  for  age,  32. 
Children,  lonely,  120. 

of  town,  distant  vision  in,  65. 

sociability  of,  175. 

social  habits  of,  159. 
Child  study,  194. 

essential  to  teacher,  9. 

methods  of,  9. 

natural    history    methods    adopted 
for,  2,  3. 
Choice,  154. 

Chorea,  or  St.  Vitus's  dance,  'JT, 
Circulation  sluggish,  117. 
Circumference  of  head,  60. 
Classification  of  children,  73. 
Clothing,  of  child,  121. 

woollen,  121. 
Colour,  apart  from  weight,  9. 


INDEX 


225 


Colour  without  form,  65. 
Command,  words  of,  41. 
Compound  brain  action,  iii. 

and  coordinated  action,  42. 

coordinated  action,  description  of, 
39,  68,  69. 
Comradeship,  121. 

Conditions,  observed  with  mental  con- 
fusion, 195. 
Conduct,  216. 

examples,  165. 
Confusion,  and  methodical  training,  89. 
Consciousness,  196. 
Continuous  culture,  value  of,  5. 
Continuous  growth  and  development, 

23- 
Control,  followed  by  spreading  action, 

17- 

improved  by  practice,  65. 

through  muscle  sense,  37. 

through  senses,  65,  199. 

through  sight  and  hearing,  37. 
Coordinated  action,  69,  102,  no,  175. 

and  compound  cerebration,  42. 

and  environment,  207. 

and  mental  capacity,  42. 

appearance  in  infant,  43. 

description,  42. 

examples,  42. 

not  produced  for  long,  69. 
Coordinated    acts,   spontaneity    inter- 
vening, 69. 
Coordinated  exercises,  importance  of, 

69. 
Coordination  and  spontaneity,  in. 

and  voluntary  power,  202. 
Copy  book  in  ^^^:iting,  129. 
Corrugation,  58. 
Corrugator  muscles,  50. 
Cortex,  brain  cells  in,  209. 
Counting,  on  fingers,  38. 
Cricket,  and  brain  training,  iii. 
Cubicles,  124. 
Culture  and  growth,  122. 
Curriculum,  122. 

Darwin,  Charles,  184. 
Deafness  and  mental  confusion,  186. 
Debility,  hand  balance  in,  55. 
Delicacy,  with  small  brain,  30. 

Q 


Delirium,  192, 193. 

Description,  detailed,  importance  of,  48. 

of  children,  73. 
Desfontaines,  100. 
Developmental  signs,  89. 
Diatactic  union,  209. 

illustration  of,  107,  108. 

increased  by  training,  107. 

of  nerve  cells,  106,  107. 
Diet,  131. 

Dietary,  breakfast,  133. 
Dietary,  see  Dinner. 
Difficulties  and  training,  59. 

in  class,  177. 
Digestion  and  brain,  118. 
Dinner,  dietary,  134. 
Directions,  precise,  199. 

terms  of,  162,  163. 
Distance  and  time,  168. 
Distinction  between  training  and  teach- 
ing, 10. 
"  Dominant  idea,"  199. 
Dormitories,  124. 
Dress,  not  conspicuous,  121. 
Drill,  advantages  of,  66. 
Drilling  and  physical  brain  training, 

149. 
Dukes,  Dr.  Clement,  123. 
Dull  pupils,  90. 

Ear,  description  of,  61. 
Early  training,  aims  of,  20. 
Elementary  vocal  sounds,  16. 
Emotion,  71. 
Emotions,  115. 

parts  moved  in,  76. 

spreading  area,  45. 
Environment,  73,  173. 

and  series  of  acts,  204. 

influence  of,  on  thought,  210. 

impression  by,  198. 
Epilepsy,  16. 

petit  mal,  16. 
Established  modes  of  brain  action,  201. 
Evolution,  68. 
Exactness  in  training,  69. 
Example,  imitation  of  fatigue,  14. 

of  act  of  memory,  187. 

of  coordinated  action,  99. 

of  faults  of  children.  16. 


226 


INDEX 


Example  of  strong  impression  without 

outward  expression,  187. 
Excitement,  mental,  117. 
Exercise,  136,  137. 
Exhaustion,  and  brain  action,  213. 

and  muscular  exercise,  180. 

causes  of,  180, 

from  bad  ventilation,  180. 

of  brain,  signs  of,  180,  181. 
Expansion  of  chest,  125. 
Expression,  absence  of,  52. 

and  brain  activity,  52. 

and  eye  movements,  52. 

and  fatigue,  52. 

as  a  whole,  52. 

Camper,  on,  86. 

Sir  Charles  Bell,  on,  87. 
Eyes,  78. 

health  of,  125. 

small,  9. 
Eyeball,  accommodation  in,  65,  66. 

in  sleep,  movements  of,  25. 
Eye  drill,  15. 
Eye  fixation,  in  speech,  16. 

in  spelling,  14. 
Eye  movements  and  addition,  185. 

and  proportion,  200. 

degree  of,  felt,  147. 

expression,  52. 

impressions  of,  147. 

in  reading,  185. 

in  writing.  186. 

irregular  so  interfere  with  attention, 
180. 

irregularity  in,  53. 

spontaneity  in,  52. 

spontaneous,  yet  controllable,  58. 

training  of,  important,  145. 

Face,  description  in  detail,  49. 

of  child,  50. 
Faculty,  mental,  149. 
Failure,  causes  of,  4. 
Fat  and  catarrh,  136. 
Fatigue,  122, 
Fatigue,  and  expression,  52. 

and  fidgetiness,  119. 

and  loss  of  appetite,  120. 

and  mental  effort,  199. 

early  recognition  of,  181,  182. 


Fatigue,  in  master,  85. 

irregular  movements  in,  181. 

mental,  180. 

of  brain,  94. 

of  eyes,  126. 

restlessness    of,    confounded    with 
spontaneity,  9. 
Features,  absence  of  normal  parts,  61. 

coarse,  61. 

symmetry  of,  61. 

well-moulded,  61. 
Feeding,  16,  117. 

defective,  effect  on  fontanelle,  175. 

regularity  in,  29,  30. 
Female,  brain  weight,  60. 
Finger  movements  and  brain  state,  55. 
Finger  twitches,  55,  56. 
First  year,  control  by  sight  and  sound, 
26. 

great  brain  growth  in,  26. 

imitation  commences,  29. 
Fixed  habits,  34. 
Flat  foot,  121. 

Flexion  of  limbs,  at  birth,  24. 
Fontanelle,  closure  of,  28. 

depressed,  175. 

description  of,  27. 

in  disease,  27. 

in  health,  27. 

pulsation  in,  175. 

shape,  27. 

size  of,  28. 
Food,  and  brain,  118. 

articles  of,  133-136. 
Forehead,  signs  in,  61. 
Frontal  muscles,  50. 
Frontals,  overacting,  57,  58. 
Frowning,  34,  50,  69. 

muscles  used,  50. 

uniform  repetition,  69. 
Furrows  on  brow,  see  Frontal  muscles. 

Geography,  study  of,  168. 
Girls,  delicate,  8. 

ill-developed,  8. 
Glands,  enlarged,  78. 
Gregarious  habits  of  nervous  children, 

15. 
Grimaces,  34. 
Grinning,  34. 


INDEX 


227 


Grinning,  and  brain  deficiency,  58. 

as  a  habit,  8. 

description,  51. 

unilateral,  51. 
Growth,  analogy  to  movements,  97. 

and  movement,  97. 

continuous,  23. 

coordinated  action  in,  99. 

diminishing  number  of  parts  grow- 
ing, 98. 

increasing  number  of  parts  grow- 
ing, 98. 

measurement  of,  63. 

rapidity  of,  in  early  life,  23. 

uniformly  repeated,  97. 
Guessing,  9. 

Gymnastics,  German  and  Swedish,  151, 
152. 

Habits,  good  and  regular,  120. 

lack  of  good,  5. 

mental,  healthy,  16. 

need  of  training,  29. 
Hall,  Dr.  Stanley,  85. 
Hand,  as  index  of  brain,  53. 

of  child  in  sleep,  54. 

postures  of,  53-56. 
Hand  balance  {see  Posture),  53. 

nervous,  54,  55. 

weak,  54. 
Hand  exercises,  accuracy  in,  143. 

described,  144,  145. 

useful  means  of  training,  143. 
Hands,  coordinated  action  of,  53. 

held  out,  53. 

held  out  at  same  level,  54. 
Hartwell,  Dr.  E.  H.,  130,  151. 
Head,  at  birth,  27. 

circumference  at  different  ages,  23. 

measurement,  27,  28. 

small,  60. 
Heads,    small,    leading    to    delicacy, 

30- 
Headache,  122. 

and  orbicular  muscles,  51. 
Headaches,  71. 
Health  statistics,  138. 
Healthiness,  64. 

Healthy  brain  in  healthy  body,  4. 
Hearing,  testing  of,  79. 


High  School  girls,  English,  too  much 

written  home  work,  183. 
History,  study  of,  168. 
Home  training,  23. 
Home  work,  see  High  School  girls. 
Honour,  ideas  of,  216, 
Hours  of  sleep  and  work,  table  of,  124. 
Hygiene,  117. 

mental,  7,  48,  139. 

of  school  life,  physical  and  mental 
aspects  of,  6. 

personal,  120. 
Hysteria,  115. 

Ideas  of  honour,  216. 
Illusions,  example  of,  71. 
Imaginations,  34. 
Imagining  uncontrolled,  119. 
Imbecile,  64. 

and  coordination,  106. 
Imitation,  142. 

faculty  of,  important,  30. 

of  fatigue,  14. 

of  signs  of  fatigue  in  teacher,  10,  12. 

of  teacher,  13. 
Imposition,  183. 
Impressed,  by  hearing,  179. 

by  sight,  179. 
Impressionability,  described,  34,  35. 

distinct  from  memory,  188. 

example  of,  64. 

increased  by  practice,  64. 

indicated,  no. 

present,  35. 
Impressions,  analogous,  190. 

auditory,  162. 

by  muscle  sense,  66,  162. 

cohesion  of,  186. 

compound,  205. 

distinctness  necessary,  211. 

early,  and  words,  65. 

fixed  set  of,  154. 

followed  by  mental  processes,  which 
are  retained  =  adhesiveness,  188. 

from  environment,  198. 

fundamental,  72. 

in  order,  68,  211. 

of  measurement  and  weight,  162. 

on    brain    by    sight,    sound,    and 
feeling,  16. 


228 


INDEX 


Impressions  produced  singly,  i6i. 

retained  in  order,  112. 

revised,  200,  201. 

sensory,  177. 

simple  reception  of,  188. 

vocal,  III. 

without   use   of   words,   examples, 
163, 164. 
Infant,  and  coordination,  106. 

at  birth,  24. 

limbs  flexed,  24. 

muscles,  strength  of,  24. 
Inhibition,  by  established  principles, 
199. 

by  stimulus,  35. 

date  of  appearance,  35. 

defined,  198. 

of  movement,  35,  68. 
Instep,  and  boots,  121. 
Instruction,  64. 

should    be    preceded   by  training, 
10. 
Intellectual  action,  207. 
Interaction  among  nerve  centres,  152, 

175- 
Interest,    added    to    teacher's    daily 

duties,  2. 
Irritability,  87. 

Joy,  increasing  movements  in,  'j'j. 

Kindergarten,  hand  movements  in,  78. 
Kinds  of  movements,  not  nerve  signs, 

73. 
Knuckles,  58. 

Latitude,  112. 

Laughing,  akin  to  crying,  96. 

Laughter,  as  an  aid  in  teaching,  70. 

description,  87. 
Length,  apart  from  bigness,  9. 
Lengths,  compared,  161. 
Lessening  series  of  movements,  exam- 
ples. 75. 
Lessons,  duration  of,  158. 
Light,  16. 

in  class-room,  126, 

to  awake  child,  122, 
Limbs,  of  infant  at  birth,  24. 
Literature,  of  education,  37. 


Liveliness,  should  be  encouraged,  30. 

Loafing,  117. 

Longitude,  and  eye-movements,  112. 

Lordosis,  56-57. 

Lunch,  132. 

Lungs,  description,  29. 

Male,  brain  weight,  in,  60. 
Manifestation,  earliest,  of  mental  power, 

178. 
Manners,  132. 
Map,  112. 
Margarine,  135. 
"  Master  tissues,"  130. 

size  and  strength  of,  130. 
Meals,  tea,  134,  135. 

times  for,  133. 
Mechanism,  nerve  muscular,  104. 
Memory,  42,  113,  170. 

and  physical  exercises,  188,  189. 

defects  of,  190,  195. 

kinds  of,  188, 

of  associated  ideas,  189. 

reactivity  of  impressions,  186. 
Mental  action,  32,  194. 

expressed  by,  103. 

expressed  by  movement,  32. 

expression  of,  194. 

how  expressed,  4. 

quantity  in  given  time,  182. 
Mental  acts,  series  of,  189. 
Menial  analysis,  171. 
Mental  aptitude,  177. 

in  a  child,  195. 
Mental  attention,  signs  of,  178. 
Mental  breakdown,  at  adolescence,  195, 
Mental  confusion,  176. 

and  concomitant  conditions,  195. 

and  deafness,  186. 

and  memory,  190. 

brain  training  in,  186. 

causes  of,  185. 

quick  pulse  in,  186. 
Mental  disorderliness,  194. 
Mental  effort,  and  fatigue,  199. 
Mental  evolution,  96. 
Mental  faculty,  149, 
Mental  habits,  healthy,  16. 
Mental  hygiene,  48,  139,  184,  194. 

sections  of,  195. 


INDEX 


229 


Mental    processes,  accuracy   needful, 
176. 

acting  regularly,  176. 

of  analysis,  190. 

training  in,  157. 
Mental  status,  reversion  in,  195. 

variable,  84. 
Mental  training,  in  choice,  171. 
Military    drill,    producing    precision, 

187. 
Mimosa  pudica,  99. 
Mind,  102. 

Modes  of  brain  action,  fixed,  189. 
Money,  knowledge  of,  176. 
Month  the  fifth,  inhibition,  35. 
Mouth,  51. 

asymmetrical  action,  "  snarhng,"  51. 

small,  9. 
Movements,  augmenting  series  of,  76. 

classes  of,  74,  75. 

coordinated  series  of,  ^t,  78. 

extra,  accompanying  mental  act  felt 
by  child,  43,  44. 

in  newly  born,  24. 

irregularity  in,  8. 

lessening  series  of,  76,  'jt. 

of  hand,  in  counting  regular  and 
uniform,  18. 

originated  in  brain,  24. 

respiratory,  178. 

spontaneous       {see      Spontaneous 
movements),  hopeful,  2. 
Movements,    spontaneous,    in    small 
parts,  178. 

of  toes,  121. 

spreading,  in  baby,  175. 
Movements,    trained,    mental    ability 
improved,  8. 

uniform  series,  75. 
Muscles,  as  sense  organs,  67. 

frontal,  50. 
Muscles  of  back,  weak  in  infant,  24. 
Muscles,  strain  on,  67. 
Muscle  sense,  141. 

examples  of,  148. 

impressions  by,  66. 

in  movement,  37. 

in  tension,  38,  148. 
Muscle  tension,  and  weight  proportion, 

SCO. 


Nails,  78. 

Natural    history,    methods    of    study, 
examples,  173. 

schedule,  72. 
Nerve  cells,  113. 

grouped,  106,  209. 
Nerve  centres,  26,  94,  95. 

for  thought,  105. 

health  and  training  of,  174  et  seq, 

in  action,  26. 

in  adolescence,  174  et  seq. 

in  infancy,  174. 

in  school  life,  174  et  seq. 

interaction  among,  175. 

spontaneous  action  of,  177. 
Nerve  paths,  41,  113,  142. 

and  brain  centres,  68. 

prearranged,  187. 

temporary,  105. 
Nerve  signs,  73. 

and  dulness,  statistics,  59. 

co-relation  with  dulness,  58, 59. 

in  eye-movements,  57. 

in  face,  49-52. 

in  hands  and  fingers,  54-56. 

in  spine,  56,  57. 

may  vary,  84. 

subnormal,  75. 

subnormal,  associated  with    brain 
states,  59. 
Nerve  storms,  115. 
Nerve  tone,  signs  of  loss  of,  181. 
Nervous  dyspepsia,  119. 
Nervousness,  71. 
Nervous  type,  215. 

described,  90,  93. 
Normal  child,  84. 
Nose,  growth  of,  61. 
Nostrils,  small,  62. 
Numbers,  teaching  of,  159,  160. 

use  of,  201. 
Numerals,  order  of,  2H. 

use  of,  189. 
Nursery,  23. 
Nutrition,  78,  89. 

Obedience,  208. 

Observation,  after  methods  of  natural 
history,  3. 
of  body  of  child,  73. 


230 


INDEX 


Observation    of    character    of    brain 
action,  48. 
of  children,  73. 
points  to  observe,  73,  74. 

Occupation,  lack  of,  119. 

Orbiculares  oculi,  muscles  for  closing 
eyelids,  51. 
tone  of,  51. 

Orderly  habits,  206. 

Organs,   control   exerted  on   one    an- 
other, 118. 

Organic  matter  breathed  out,  poison- 
ous, 127. 

Organised  work  and  games,  value  of, 
89. 

Origin  of  difficulties,  2. 

Originality,  wanting,  215. 

Overmobility,  120, 

Overtaxing  the  memory,  187. 

Oxygen,  in  class-room,  127. 

Palate,  63. 

as  indication  of  development,  63. 
Palpitation  and  disorderly  brain  action, 

5- 
Parsing,  170. 
Passion,  storm  of,  44. 
Peevishness,  87,  88. 
Phonograph,  187. 
Photograph  of  baby,  25. 
Physical  exercises,  130. 

and  memory,  188,  189. 

give  good  carriage  and  gait,  66. 

one  advantage  of,  11. 
Physical  training,  duration  of  lesson, 
149. 

ends  aimed  at  in,  130. 

quickens  thought,  206. 
Physiognomy,  60. 

and  nerve  system,  60. 

and  proportions,  60. 

as  an  indication  of  development,  60. 
Physiological  law  of  impression,  68. 
Physiological  terms  of  description,  value 

of,  95.  96. 
Plants,  and  movement,  97. 

leaves  of,  need  washing,  128. 
Play  of  infancy,  impressions  produced, 

67,  68. 
Playfulness,  importance  of,  30. 


Pleasure  in  teacher's  work,  2. 

Pleat  of  ear,  61,  62. 

Post  card,  for  examination  by  child,  2a 

Postures,  of  infant  at  birth,  24. 

of  hand,  or  balance,  53-56. 
Practice  of  finger  exercises,  144. 
Precept,  21. 

truth  of,  modified   by  experience, 
20,  21. 
Prehensile  act  in  infant,  35. 
Prehension,  act  of,  178,  179. 
Principal,  of  school,  14. 

knowledge  of  each  pupil  necessary 
to,  3. 
Proportion,  and  eye-movements,  200. 

estimation  of,  in  length,  199. 

estimation  of,  in  weight,  199. 

in  arithmetic,  115. 

muscle  sense  in,  38. 
Proportions  and  physiognomy,  60. 
Prostration  at  adolescence,  5. 
Psychology,  physiological,  59. 
Psychosis,  184,  191. 

Pulse,  quick,  in  mental  confusion,  186. 
Punctuality,  in  feeding,  119. 

in  hours  of  sleep,  119. 
Pupil,  and  teacher,  109. 

of  eye,  contraction  of,  188. 
Pupils  of  eyes  in  sleep,  25. 

Rapid  observation,  necessary  in  class 
training,  14. 
terms  of  description  needed  for,  73. 

Ratio,  161. 

Reading,  20,  150. 

Recovering  from   chorea,   movements 
lessen,  77. 

Regiment  of  soldiers,  and  brain  cen- 
tres, 94. 
analogy  to  brain,  102. 

Regularity  in  times  for  sleep  and  airing 
of  child,  16. 

Repetition    of   action    with    accuracy- 
retentiveness,  11. 

Report  of  100,000  children,  see  Refer- 
ences, 15,  41. 

Respiratory     movements,    see     Move- 
ments. 

Response,  70,71. 

appearance  in  infant,  45. 


INDEX 


231 


Response  delayed,  9,  71,  203. 

of  brain,  45,  174. 

quick,  9. 

vague,  180. 

verbal,  179 
Responsibilities,  in  family,  i. 

toward  individual  child,  I. 
Restlessness,  89. 
Restraint,  freedom  from,  216. 
Retention  of  impressions,  41. 
Retentiveness,  41. 

and  memory,  42,  113. 

and  numerals,  41. 

cultivated,  175. 

depends  on,  41. 

for  movements,  41. 

for  thought,  41. 

low  type  of,  76. 
Reversion,  and  lowered  nutrition,  loi. 

and  nutrition,  in  lower  animals,  191. 

in  attitudes,  loi. 

in  brain  states,  191. 

in  mental  status,  195. 
Revival  of  former  thoughts,  193. 
Rim  of  ear,  60. 
Rooms  for  sleeping,  122. 

Schedule  for  examining  natural  objects, 

171. 
School  desks,  128. 
Schoolhouse,  125. 
School  hygiene,  194,  195. 
School  life,  hygiene  of,  6. 

temptations  of,  215. 
School  shop,  175. 

Scientific  description  of  children,  73. 
Scientific  principles,  applied  to  study 

of  mind,  79. 
Second  year,  speech  begun,  16. 
Sedentary    occupation    and    exercise, 

136,  137- 
Seedling  plant,  169. 

food  of,  169. 
Self-help,  131. 
Self-reliance,  215. 
Sense,  organs  of,  178. 
Sense  organs,  exercise  of,  65. 
Series  of  movements,  augmenting,  75. 

coordinated,  75. 

lessening,  75. 


Series  of  movements,  75. 

uniformly  repeated,  75. 
Seventh  year,  circumference  of  head, 
60. 

vocabulary,  165, 166. 
Short  sight,  186. 
Shuttleworth,  Dr.  G.  E.,  64. 
Sick  child,  and  coordination,  io6. 
Sidgwick,  Mrs.  William  H.,  138. 
Sight,  testing  of,  78,79. 
Size,  estimation  of  (see  Muscle  sense), 

38. 

felt,  10. 
Size  of  object,  apart  from  weight,  9. 
Skin,  clear  from  cracks,  etc.,  80. 
Sleep  and  waking  of  child,  122, 123. 
Sleep,  circulation  during,  25. 

eyeballs  movements  of,  25. 

hours  of,  124. 

infant  in,  25. 

pupils  in,  25. 
Slowness  of  action,  and  circulation,  117. 
Sloyd  work,  78. 
Smiling,  58. 

Smith,  Priestley,  school  desks,  129. 
Sounds,  elementary  vocal,  16. 
Spasm  and  stammering,  76. 
Speech,  cultured,  175. 
Spelling,  15. 

Spine,  curvature  of,  from  bending  at 
desks,  56. 

description  of,  56. 

postures  of,  56. 
Spontaneity,  64,  195. 

and  brain  activity,  175. 

and  voluntary  action,  198. 

arrested  178. 

described,  32. 

encouraged,  72,  167. 

in  mental  action,  33. 

in  movement,  33. 

in  young  animals,  184. 

of  plants  in  growth,  184. 

wanting,  215. 
Spontaneity,  with  impressionability,  68. 
Spontaneous  action,  excessive,  34. 

subnormal,  34. 

uniformly  repetitive,  34. 
Spontaneous  activities,  6. 

impressions  controlling  them,  6. 


232 


INDEX 


Spontaneous    brain    action,    basis    of 

mental  power,  178. 
Spontaneous  imagining,  119. 
Spontaneous  movement,  chattering,  30. 
indicates  hopeful  condition  of  brain, 

2. 
inhibited,  no. 
in  small  parts,  178. 
of  toes,  121. 
Spontaneous  thinking — stories,  doings 
of    animals,   conversations,   32, 

33- 
Spontaneous   thoughts,   inhibition  of, 

212,  213. 
Spreading  action,  following    first    at- 
tempts at  control,  16. 
Spreading  area,  185. 
and  emotion,  45. 
of  brain  action,  69. 
of  movement,  examples,  43, 44. 
stammering,  44. 
Spreading  brain  action,  example,  202. 
Spreading  movements,  in  baby,  175. 
Spreading    spasm    {see    Stammering, 

etc.) ,  76. 
Stammering,  44,  76. 
Standard  of  measurements,  162. 

weights,  162. 
Starchy  foods,  29. 
Statistics,  health  of  women  in  college 

life,  138. 
Statuary,  125. 
Status  of  child,  48. 
Stealing  and  epilepsy,  16. 
Sternum,  28. 
Strength,  speed,  and  skill,  exercise  of, 

needed,  131. 
Strong  stimulus,  214. 
Study    of    children,    natural    history 

methods  adopted,  85. 
"  St.  Vitus's  dance,"  55. 
Subnormal  action,  34. 
Subnormal  nerve  signs,  examples,  75. 
Success  and  failure,  causes  of,  to  be 

worked  out,  4. 
Superfluity  of  brain  action,  44,  45. 
Superintendent  of  school,  72. 
Swedish  and  German  gymnastics,  151, 

152. 
Symmetry  of  development,  61. 


Table  of  work  and  sleep,  for  age,  124. 

Teacher  in  class,  relation  to  pupils,  3, 

109. 
Teaching  and  training,  distinction,  10. 
Teaching,  of  names,  160. 

of  numerals,  159,  160. 

of  weights,  160. 

systematic,  211. 
Teeth,  78. 

cleaning  of,  125. 
Teething,  29. 

Temperature,  of  class-room,  128. 
Test  type,  80. 
Teutons  and  Gauls,  martial  exercise 

of,  151. 
Thinking,  occurring  during  inhibition, 
36. 

self-contained,  200. 
Thought  and   interaction   of  centres, 

198. 
Thoughts,  independent  of  senses,  34. 

power  of  expressing  them,  lacking, 
215. 

reactivity  of,  192,  193. 

spontaneous,  suppressed,  199. 

spreading  area  of,  example,  203. 

value,  depends  on,  183. 
Thrift,  ideas  of,  130. 
Time  and  distance,  168. 
Time,  appreciation  of,  164,  165. 
Time  for  play,  175. 
Tired  child,   described,  6,     See    also 

Child. 
Toes  of  infant,  movements  of,  34. 
Tongue  protruded,  43. 
Tonsils,  78,  80. 
Training,  65,  72,  140. 

and  character,  69. 

and  difficulties,  59. 

and  future  learning,  72. 

and  teaching,  distinction,  10. 
Training  general  characters  of  brain 

action,  71. 
Training  hand  exercises,  143. 
Training  in  making  choice,  171. 

in  mental  processes,  157. 

in  separating  observations,  166, 167. 
Training,  method  in,  115. 

need  of,  from  birth,  25. 

of  eye-movements,  140. 


INDEX 


233 


Training,  preceding  teaching,  10,  140, 
141. 
without  use  of  words,  11. 
Transcription,  15. 
Tricks  or  habits,  75. 
Twitches  of  fingers,  55. 
Twitching  of  fingers  holding  pen,  74. 

Uncontrolled  thinking,  causes  exhaus- 
tion, 120. 

Understanding  of  what  is  occurring  in 
child's  brain,  3. 

Uniform  grinning  and  mental  defi- 
ciency, 58. 

Uniform  mental  effort  tiring,  54. 

Uniformly  repeated  growth,  example, 

97- 
Uniformly  repeated    movements,    ex- 
amples, 75. 

Varied  environment,  215,  216. 
Ventilation,  122. 

and  exhaustion,  180. 
Verbal  memory,  188. 
Vertical  script,  130. 

Visible  indications  of  brain  state  ob- 
tained by  careful  observation,  9. 
Vision,  distant,  practice  in,  125, 
Vitality  given  to  body  by  brain,  5. 
Vivacity  of  brain  in  infant,  24. 
Vivacity  of  movement,  34. 
Vocabulary  at  seventh  year,  165. 
Vocal  impressions,  iii. 
Volition,  ig6. 
Volitional  action,  204. 

and  antecedent  impressions,  204. 
Volitional  power  and  good  health,  213. 

and  low  diet,  213. 
Volume  of  head,  good,  90. 
Voluntary  action,  205,  209. 

spontaneity  in,  198. 
Voluntary  power,  196. 


Voluntary  power  and  comparison,  205, 

and  control,  199. 

at  birth,  203. 

at  four  months,  204. 

choice,  204,  205. 

evolution  of,  203. 

mechanical,  215. 

mental,  197. 

modes  of  brain  action  leading  to, 

209. 
motor,  197. 
Voluntary  thoughts,  207. 

War  Department,  94. 

Warmth  and  cold  affects  infant,  35. 

Waste  of  brain  power,  72. 

Water  cress,  134. 

Weakness  of  back  muscles,  24. 

Weighing,  156. 

Weight,  38. 

estimate  of,  see  Muscle  sense. 

felt,  10. 

of  child,  increase  in  first  year,  23. 
Weighted  pill  boxes,  for  testing,  158. 
Weights,  appreciated,  38. 

and  muscle  tension,  200. 

order  of,  211. 

teaching  of,  160. 
Well-being  of  children,  i. 
What  to  look  "  at "  and  "  for,"  know- 
ledge of,  necessary,  9. 
Whispered  speech  and  hearing,  81. 
Windows,  126. 
Woollen  clothes,  121. 
Words,  employment  in  training,  146, 

148. 
Work,  hours  of,  table,  124. 
Working  hypothesis,  104. 
Wrists,  58. 
Writing,  150. 

Year,  second,  speech  commenced  in,  16. 


THE    STUDY    OF    CHILDREN 


AND 

THEIR   SCHOOL    TRAINING. 

BY 

FRANCIS   WARNER,  M.D.  (Lond.), 
F.R.C.P.,  F.R.C.S.  (Eng.), 

Physician  to  the  London  Hospital ;  Lecturer  on  Therapeutics  and  on  Botany  at  tn* 

London  Hospital  College ;  Formerly  Hunterian  Professor  of  Anatomy 

and  Physiology  in  the  Royal  College  of  Surgeons  of  England. 

i2mo.    Cloth.    Price  $i.oo,  net. 


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graph. 


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66   FIFTH    AVENUE,    NEW   YORK. 


A   COURSE   OF   LECTURES 

ON  THE 

GROWTH  AND  MEANS  OF  TRAINING 

THE 

MENTAL   FACULTY. 

DELIVERED   IN  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CAMBRIDGE. 

BY 

FRANCIS  WARNER,  M.D.  (Lond.), 
F.R.C.P.,  F.R.C.S.  (Eng.), 

Physician  to  the  London  Hospital ;  Lecturer  on  Therapeutics  and  on  Botany  at  tht 

London  Hospital  College  ;  Formerly  Hunterian  Professor  of  Anatomy 

and  Physiology  in  the  Royal  College  of  Surgeons  of  England. 

lamo.    Cloth.    Price,  90  cents,  net. 


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and  though  somewhat  clumsily  put  together,  it  should  be  very  help- 
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